Ascension
by thephantomime099
Summary: A group of travelers arrived at the Andromeda Galaxy, hoping to find new homes and explore new worlds. But what they discovered was the truth-about themselves...and beyond. (This is an AU and so requires its own internal logic. So be warned of massive character derailments, OCs and some lore breaks.)
1. Chapter 1

Somewhere in the Andromeda galaxy, 2.5 million years away from the Milky way, a ship nears its 614-year long journey, carrying eager explorers ready to start a new life. They were in cryo stasis for most of the travel through dark space, but one of them…was woken early.

* * *

He opened his eyes and groan as bright light flood his vision. Ice ran up and down his arms and he started shivering. His lungs heaved without warning and though the warm air rushing inside calmed his lungs, a dry itch started flaring in his throat.

_Where am I?_

His body curled to cough, but then, his body wouldn't move. This and the thought that he didn't know where he is, much less who he is, caused fear to flow through his veins.

Then hands went under his back, gentle hands, and lifted him to his side to cough.

"Easy, there. We're here. You're in safe hands," a soothing voice said. He looked up and saw a middle-aged man bending over him, wearing gloves and dressed in white and red. He squinted at it. He knew it meant something but he couldn't remember what just now. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a similarly dressed woman beside him, looking at her arm with something glowing over it.

A word suddenly popped in his brain. _Omni-tool. _

He only knew the word but not what it does and as he racked his head over it, she walked towards them and stopped in front of him. She raised her arm in his face. He drew back slightly.

"Easy there," the man said, gently rubbing his back. He relaxed and she started running the strange glowing thing over him. After a few sweeps, she dropped her arm, apparently satisfied and with her other hand, fiddled with it.

"Vital signs' good," she said, tapping on it without looking at him. "I'll inform Dr T'Perro that he's awake," she added and then with a nod at his companion, she walked away to the next pod.

"Where am I?" he croaked at his helper.

With the woman gone, he paid attention to his surroundings. It seemed he was inside a medium sized room, full of bed and pods like his. The room was silent, except for the soft beeping of machines and the whispered voices of patients waking from sleep like him, tended to by people like the man beside him.

The man's face looked washed out by the harsh light but he smiled at him as he handed him a cup of water. "You're in Andromeda," he answered. "This is the Initiative, and you're Scott Ryder, member of our Pathfinding team."

"Right," Scott replied. For some reason, his brain cannot comprehend any of that. His head feels heavy as if something had been punching it over and over again. It hurt to think so he sipped at his cup and relieve his parched throat. He drank half of it and then put it away.

"Sorry. I can't remember anything," he apologized. Then memories start appearing which almost hurt. But even so, he can now remember that the man was wearing a uniform to identify him as part of the medic corps.

"No need to apologize to me about it," the man replied cheerfully. He opened his omni-tool and scanned him too. "It's natural to feel disoriented just after cryo. When we first woke up, we felt like we've been hit up the head with a sledgehammer."

Scott dropped his hand as he finally understood something. "You said we were in Andromeda. As in the galaxy?"

"Yes. We've arrived. We've reached the outer arms just a year ago and we're now approaching the Heleus cluster, our new home. We'd be meeting with the Nexus in five days." The man fiddled with the buttons to let Scott process this. Nexus?

"Imagine the thought of just arriving on a galaxy 2-5 million light years away. Our families' descendants back home would like to know that. Also, everyone else who thought we were being stupid in going here. I think we already informed them as soon as we arrived."

Scott's brow furrowed. "How? I thought Andromeda is a million light years away. They'd get the message a million years later."

"Good to know your reasoning skills are active," the man replied. "But we're not relying on light to send our messages. We have a Quantum Entanglement Communicator aboard. Rest assured; they'll know we arrived safely."

For some reason, their families knowing about their arrival did not cheer him up. "Okay," he says simply.

The door opened and a humanoid in a med coat walked in. Humanoid, as she is bipedal, of the same height of humans and having the same anatomy of the female sex. But he knew she was an alien because instead of hair, she has a crest made of cartilage growing from her scalp and the strange, striking color of her blue skin.

He racked his brain for the term for her race. Slowly, before she reached them, he remembered. _Asari_. Asari skin color vary from blue to purple and sometimes green. Also, unlike humans, they do not have two sexes but only one and they reproduce through parthenogenesis.

It seemed his brain was starting to work.

As he thought about his, she looked around and saw his companion waving at her. She smiled and walk towards them.

His nurse closed his omni-tool. "That's it, I think. I'll hand you over to Dr T'Perro," he said.

"Thanks," Scott said.

"You're welcome," the nurse answered and he walked away to his next patient and Dr T'Perro replaced him by Scott's side. "I'm Dr. Lexi T'Perro. I'm the chief medical specialist for the Pathfinding mission team. How are you feeling, Scott?" she asked, the slight smile stretching the white line between her bottom lip.

"I'm fine. The lady said I'm good," he answered, with a nod at the woman earlier who was now busy with another patient.

"Good. I need to conduct some cursory tests," she said and held up one finger. "Look here," she said, moving her hand slowly from side to side as Scott followed her finger. As he did, his eyes fell on the pod near them, where a familiar name was flashing on the small screen. Sara.

A jot of fear ran through him. "What's happening with Sara?" he asked as he remembered his sister.

Dr Lexi glanced at the pod and the people tending around it, then she went back to her work. "Nothing's wrong with her. It looks like it'll take a while for her to come around."

The worry fell away and he smirked as he looked at the pod. "Yes, well, my sister may have been born earlier but she's never early after that."

Dr Lexi smiled. "Even though you won't see a familiar face, it's good to know your memories are returning at least." She seemed satisfied with her readings and so closed her omni-tool. "We need to check on your implants. Sam, are you monitoring?"

Scott looked around to see who she was talking to. No one was near to them and none of the others look up at the sound of that name. He turned back to the doctor, puzzled. The doctor waited for a few seconds then raised her head and repeated her instructions. "Sam, are you monitoring?"

"Yes, Dr T'Perro," an electronic voice answered. "Hello, Dr T'Perro. Hello Scott Ryder."

"Who's that?" he asked, looking around. No one looked up from hearing the name Sam.

"That's SAM, the AI of the Pathfinding team. Your Pathfinding team. SAM is short for Simulated Adaptive Matrix," she replied.

Scott frowned. He remembered something about AI and had a vague feeling it was bad. "An AI?"

She nodded, paused, then peered closely at him. "Yes... I think we need to call some of your team to explain," she decided.

* * *

Scott was in the recovery bay, getting his reflexes tested when someone from his team came by to check up on him. By that point, he already endured Dr Lexi tapping at his kneecap and pointing a laser at his hand when he wasn't looking. He snatched it away quickly and despite his complaints, she went on with her task. Now she has him gripping rubber balls and recording when the door opened and a black man wearing a sweatshirt and loose pants entered. His bushy hair, tied in a ponytail, bobbed as he strode forward. He reached them and seated himself beside his bed, on the opposite side of Dr Lexi, as if he was a friend and not a stranger.

"Hey, Ryder. You're awake. I'm Marcus Zola," the man said, smiling, and extended a hand. "I'm on the Pathfinding team, like you. Remember me?"

"Yep," Scott said and shook his hand. He remembered him from the brief training they had together as a Pathfinder team before they slipped into cryo. Earthborn. Makes a mean drink.

He put away the datapad he was reading to make himself remember everything about where he was, who these people are and why are they not in the Milky Way.

"Your Dad and your sister are also part of the team. We're the ones who's going to secure a home for us here in Andromeda," Marcus reminded him casually, careful not to overwhelm Scott at once or belittle him for his cryo-induced confusion. His voice flowed like honey, not too low nor too hard. Scott thought it as a "Mom" voice. "I heard you had some questions about SAM?"

"No. I remember now. No need to tell me about it." AI and its research were banned back in Citadel space in the Milky way, where the memories of recent attacks from rogue AI still lingered. Those rogue AI, the geth, were too alien for organics to comprehend. They also never left a reason for their attacks, only devastation. So, the fear of AI never abated.

It was also the reason why Scott was here in another galaxy. His father was discovered to be doing illegal research into AI, which caused a scandal so great the Alliance stripped him of honors it bestowed on him for all his years serving as an N7. Not that the Alliance was actually against it; they'd rather have anything that will give humanity an edge over the other races. But the Council's power was great, and they thought it best not to offend them. Yet.

Alec's disgrace has also ended Scott and Sara's careers and ensured that they will never be welcome anywhere, so long as the Council ruled. And so they decided to make a new start in a new galaxy. Or at least, their father did.

That illegal research was SAM, and because humanity has lesser hang-ups compared to the Citadel species with regards to AI due to not experiencing directly their impact, the Andromeda Initiative allowed its use for the project. The founders thought the AIs were necessary to overcome whatever problems may arise in a new galaxy. Its use was not possible back to the Milky way due to the Citadel's stance on it, but here, out of the Council's watch, they can write their own rules. Only the leadership and the Pathfinding team knew that the AI was unshackled; everyone else thought it as a VI. Only the top people needed to know. Only they needed to know.

Marcus turned to Dr Lexi. "How's he doing, Doc?"

"Pretty good, so far. His normal functions are returning as expected."

"How long before he can go on drills?"

Dr Lexi looked up from her datapad to frown at him. "I think Scott needs to have a day to acclimatize. He's already been through so much that more of it will make him sick."

"She's right, you know," Scott piped up.

Marcus chuckled. "Aw, you poor little lab rat. Have they been poking you a lot?," he says, patting him softly on the back. Then he leaned closer to Dr Lexi. "I don't think we have the time for that, Doc. Orders from high up," he whispered.

Dr Lexi frowned longer at him. Then she sighed. "He'll have a little rest after this then I'll clear him this afternoon," she conceded.

"What's going on?" Scott asked. "And where's Dad?"

Marcus glanced at Dr Lexi who, catching the movement, made a waving motion with her hand. "Pretend I'm not here. It's covered by patient-doctor confidentiality," she said, not looking up from her datapad so Marcus turned back to him. "Your dad's on the bridge. Don't worry, you'll see him soon," he assured him.

That was not reassuring. He cannot not believe his own father would not bother to check personally on the well-being of his own children.

He checked. Maybe this was one of the days again where Dad was working on something right now and everyone knows his job was always important? If it is, he's being a hypocrite, since they both have the same profession.

But Marcus did not elaborate further. He just nodded at his legs. "So, how's the legs?"

Scott wiggled his toes. "Amazing. One foot is putting itself over the other."

Marcus grinned. "You're one of the lucky ones. Some woke up and saw them gone."

"You're kidding, right?"

Marcus snorted. "Of course, I'm kidding. Who the fuck steals a pair of feet? Anyway, you're still lucky because you're going to need them soon."

"I thought ETA is in five days."

Marcus looked around them first. "It seems we're not going to the Nexus but directly to Habitat 7," he said, referring to the forward operating base who was supposed to arrive early in Andromeda to prepare for the arrival of the arks, one of it theirs. "Captain Dunn ordered a course correction yesterday. It seems the Nexus is missing."

Scott frowned. "The Nexus is missing? How can something so big as that go missing?" he asked, about the station that was half as big as the Citadel.

"Not so loud," Marcus cautioned. "We don't want to cause a panic. Anyway, finding the Nexus is the next thing we'll do, right after we settle."

"Do you think it didn't arrive?"

"No idea. We only know that they're not where they were expected to be and our scanners aren't picking them up. Comm's just giving us static too. So Captain Dunn and your father agreed that we should head directly to Habitat 7 before we go looking for them."

They just arrived and there's already bad news. "So here we are."

"Yup," Marcus said and stood up. "So you better get yourself in shape, or you're going to be left behind."

* * *

Captain Dunn paced the length of the bridge as her officers' work on their consoles. A gleam of excitement shone on her phoenix eyes, bright against her flat, brown face and. Her chin length hair bobbed as she walked, infecting her crew, filling them with the same enthusiasm she felt. As a young child, she loved to travel and manning her own transport, which translated to a career in the Alliance as an officer, culminating in being a she wanted more than sitting at home or teaching at the academy for her retirement. This was supposed to be her retirement and she considered it her crowning achievement to transport them safely to a new galaxy and a new home. History will write of her as the captain that have reached Andromeda, where no human captain has gone before. Now that they were close at the end of their journey, she was not going to miss this moment now.

She went to her seat and turned to her helm officer. "Onscreen," she instructed.

Lani Reed nodded and with a few taps on her console, their screen was filled of the planet that would be their new home. Everyone on the bridge went silent in awe of the world they were to inhabit; a world of soft purple clouds, revealing dark-grey land amidst a blue-green ocean. To finally reach their destination after six hundred years of traveling through dark space…

"I think we had enough look at it," Captain Dunn said after a few minutes. "Lani, take us in orbit." Lani, her pilot, complied. Captain Dunn sat back and gazed contentedly at their new home.

Then the ship reeled. Hard.

"Battle Stations!" Captain Dunn yelled from the floor where she was thrown as the klaxon goes off in the bridge. She resumed her seat and strapped herself in. "Report!"

All of them are scrambling to their stations, not expecting the sudden tremors that's gripping the ship.

"Scanners report intense gravitational and electromagnetic fluctuations, Captain!" the science officer informed them, clutching hard at her console.

"Systems failing! We're not moving!" Lani yelled, frantically tapping keys.

Dunn tapped at her console. "Engineering report!"

"The drive's doing everything it can!" the chief engineer replied from the comm. "It isn't a problem from our end!"

The science officer called her name. "Captain! Hull Breach in Decks 15-26!"

Captain Dunn turned to him, eyes wide. "Hull Breach? Hull Breach? Why the hell are we having a hull breach for? Are our shields up?"

"It's not working. It's as if whatever's out there is passing through it and directly affecting our hull."

She stared at him, rendered stupid with shock_. What could possibly have done this?_

She puzzled over it for a few seconds then shook her head to clear her mind. Whatever it is, it can wait. She did not have time to wonder about it while her ship's falling apart around her. She punched at her console to call for the section manager. Her fingers almost slipped as her console's shaking intensified. "Evacuate decks 15-26 and seal it after everyone there's accounted for!" she ordered him when he came online. She then turned to the officer. "What's the status of the energy readings?"

"It's all around us, but mostly wrapped around one of the arms-wait, the sensors picked up something. It's coming from Habitat 7."

The screen blinked and then showed a vortex of unknown energy swirling around the planet. An abnormal and massive storm was on its surface with dark clouds lit under by intermittent lightning, where, in its epicenter, a spot of light was blinking. As they watched, the storm gobbled up the planet's surface, raking the land around it.

Around the planet, the star field swirled, arms of space and light emanating from it, stretching and tearing, until it reached their screens and the ark shook again.

The shake brought back Captain Dunn's wits and she snapped at them to start moving. "Get Alec Ryder online!"

The comm specialist's fingers flew swiftly over buttons. He then yelled that the Pathfinder was online.

"Ryder here," the comm cackled, transmitting the deep, serious but calm voice of their Pathfinder.

"Alec! We need you," Captain Dunn shouted at him over the static. "Get your Pathfinding Team ready." She gripped her seat hard as the ark shook again, hearing the screams of her crew mixing in with the wailing klaxon. She grimaced after it was over, feeling the pain from her sides where they hit the armrests. "It seems...you have to land in Habitat 7 earlier than expected."


	2. Chapter 2

Marcus picked Scott up from the recovery bay and they ran to the docks where the team's shuttle was waiting.

"What the fuck is happening?" Scott asked as they ran. People were scrambling to get a foothold on the trembling ship. Equipment started bursting in sparks as their circuits overloaded from the stress, prompting the fire alarm to blare on top of the klaxon.

"Just keep moving," Marcus said and shoved him gently forward. They held on to the railings as they run, sometimes crawling the rest of the way to the docking bay.

The door opens and they arrived in the shuttle bay where some of their team were already prepping. As they went to their lockers and followed suit, the other door opened and their team leader, Alec Ryder walked in.

The former N7, now Pathfinder of the human ark Hyperion, with salt and pepper hair and has a grim face lined deep with experience. He walked towards the lockers with sprightliness despite his age. As he also took out his armor, he briefed them about their mission.

"Here are the facts: our ark is trapped by some unknown gravitational and electromagnetic fluctuations in this sector. The bridge informed me that it may have been triggered from the surface of Habitat 7," he said, putting on his boots. "A signal is coming from an artificial structure on the surface, causing a storm around it about a thousand kilometers in diameter. It's affecting the planet as well as the space above it, where unfortunately our ark is trapped. We'll have to drop in its eye and shut it down. Questions?"

Marcus raised a hand as he wiggled a glove on the other. "What else are we going to expect there, Sir?"

"The usual. No idea. That's all the people up there can give us," he said with a sharp nod at the closed doors were further on, the bridge is struggling to keep the ship together. "But if you remember your training, you'll be fine," he said. He was about to put his chest piece when he paused and looked around. "Where is my son?"

"Here," Scott answered from the back. He was helping the others prep because he did not expect to be deployed so soon from cryo.

His father stared hard at him. "Why aren't you prepped?"

"Alec, I think it's not a good idea to let him come with us," a woman with a short, blond pale hair intervened. "He just got out of cryo."

Alec looked at her with his black eyes, as impenetrable as obsidian. "He is part of my team and I expect everyone to be prepared for anything, Cora," he said coldly. He did not shout at her, but by her reaction, it was as if he did. He did not need to; his voice has that rare quality of gravitas that lend weight to his words and impact to his tone. It was not easy to say no to him.

He turned to his son with the same cold glare. "Get your kit. We'll move in five."

"Shit," Scott said under his breath as he frantically put on his armor. Marcus went over and got his rifle and pistol for him and put it beside him as he dressed. "Sucks to be you."

"Wanna trade?"

"Nah."

A grin appeared on Marcus' face, then it faded away. "Too bad your sister can't come, huh?"

"Yep." Scott finished strapping on his chest piece. "She's gonna be real sorry she'll miss this."

"So, let's go and make some stories to tell when she wakes up, huh?" Martin asked with a pat on the shoulder and he handed Scott his helmet. As he put it on, Marcus suddenly moved away for some reason, which was answered when he saw his father suddenly beside him.

"I heard what happened," Alec said quietly to him. "Your sister's strong. She'll make it."

Scott stared at him behind the visor of his helmet. As always, Alec's words were still formal even when discussing intimate family matters so Scott found it hard to believe him, especially since he knew he never visited them at the cryo bay. But Alec's his father as well as his commander so he just nodded politely.

"Don't let it get you down. I need you sharp."

Typical. "Yes, sir."

Alec looked at him longer, then was about to move away but changed his mind. He came back and added, "Your mother would have been proud of you. Of both of you."

Scott didn't know how to answer that. But he didn't need to because Alec passed him by to go to the head of the team before they board the ship. He turned around to address them all. "Alright, team," he called, in his deep, growling voice, "this isn't how our first mission is supposed to go but remember that we prepared for anything." He looked at them individually, making them feel as if they were not invisible, that no matter how small their achievements was, they matter even to a legend like Alec.

"I chose each of you for the Pathfinder team, not because you're talented and passionate, but because you're dreamers like me. We dream of exploring the unknown, of finding the edge of the map then discovering what lies beyond. When people look back on this-and they will-they'll remember we didn't give up. We kept dreaming. That our first few faltering steps in Andromeda were the beginning of everything they know. We only get one chance to be the first." He paused, and swept over them again. "So let's go make history."

The team cheered. Courage flowed into them as they thought about going into the unknown, defeating the fear it usually brings. This was why, despite Alec's faults, people willingly put their fate in his hands.

* * *

As soon as they entered the atmosphere, their equipment aboard their shuttle started flickering.

"Status!" Alec yelled at the pilots as their shuttle shuddered and they felt gravitational forces pressing down on them. Alec, Cora and Greer were seated just behind the pilots, while Scott and Marcus were seated opposite them.

"We're going through an ion storm, Alec!" Markland replied, his voice sounding flat due to his helmet's filters. Meanwhile, Fisher's fingers flew on his console to keep them airborne. "The unknown structure seems to be causing the planet's polarity to reverse itself, making this geomagnetic storm. It's frying our equipment and scrambling our sensors! We'll have to drop sharply!"

"Do it!"

"Copy," Fisher replied and warned them. "Prepare for fifteen g."

They all tapped on their consoles and instructed their suits to keep most of the gravitational forces they'd be getting off them, while preparing themselves mentally and physically. They tensed their leg and abdominal muscles as the ship dived like a bullet, spinning down through the storm towards the planet's surface.

Their heads cleared when Fisher pulled the ship to cruising altitude. The fluctuations became lesser and their equipment flickered to life then stayed on. They have arrived just near the edge of the storm.

"Holy shit," Greer murmured as they looked through their windows and saw a wall of a massive tornado surrounding their destination. As debris swirled around it wildly, boulders the size of mountains hang in the air, spinning around it as lightning arced between them. Just beyond, they could just barely see a calm area where they knew the unknown structure was located.

Carefully keeping it from being drawn in, Fisher had the shuttle circle the storm for a while to find safe passage through it. But they found none.

"We can't drop in the eye, Alec," Fisher informed them despite the roar of the wind. "We'll have to pass through the walls to get there."

"Something inside there is fighting the planet's gravity," Markland explained the floating boulders. He was still looking at his console. "If we go in there, we'd be shredded as well as get hit by the rocks."

Alec read Markland's scans from his omni-tool, then closed it. "If we don't go in there, the Hyperion is dead," he shouted. "It's the only way to get at the thing inside."

"Are you sure, Alec? If we go in there, the shuttle might not handle it. We might not come through alive!"

"We'll have to try. We're the only hope Hyperion has got!"

Greer turned away from the window sharply to stare at Alec. "Are we really going into that thing?" he yelled, looking wide-eyed.

"Yes, we are, Greer. Or everyone aboard the Hyperion will die," Alec answered, looking straight in his eyes. "Do you copy, soldier?"

Greer stopped gaping. "Yes, sir," he said somberly. He leaned back in his seat and squeezed his eyes shut, murmuring something.

The pilots looked at each other. Fisher hesitated, but he tapped on his console and steered the ship to the wall.

The ship veered to the right, following the direction of the storm's spin. Fisher kept the ship's speed the same as the storm's until he spotted a gap between the boulders and eased them in.

The ship's thrusters failed as the storm took it along with everything else but the pilots struggled to keep them moving towards the center as well as keeping abreast of the boulders and debris. Their shields pinged as small debris bounced off them and their hull screeched due to the gravitational distortions, but the ship kept on as it revolved along with the wind, creeping closer and closer into the center-

Lightning flashed and a boom ripped into their ears. Their shuttle shuddered and veered to the left. "We're hit!" Fisher yelled. Another flash of light and the metal on the other side of their shuttle screamed. Then a series of hits rocked them around, lights going off all around them, their shouts lost over roar of thunder going off simultaneously and one after the other.

Then a boulder hit their ship, tearing it in half. They yelled as the other part of the ship was flung from them, taking Alec, Cora and the pilots on course to another boulder as their part was flung onto the opposite direction. It hit another boulder, sending it plummeting inside the eye.

Martin did not faint from the impact and so unstrapped them both and their seats fell away from each other. As they fell through the air, he focused on Scott. He was acting prone so he grasped his arm and shook it gently. No response.

"Scott!" Marcus yelled, holding his face up at him and saw his eyes closed. He opened his omni-tool and tapped on it to instruct Scott's suit to jolt him awake. It worked and Scott kicked his legs, then yelled as they saw themselves plummeting to the ground.

"Calm down, Scott! I got you," Marcus said, holding on to him even as his friend's limbs wind-milled in the air. He gripped him firmly and pressed a button on his suit. Immediately, a parachute popped from his back and they jerked up as it caught.

"Shit!" Martin screamed as the parachute drew them towards the wall. He released it, setting it free flying back to the storm, and activated his jump jet. "Scott! I can't hold us up together! Use your jump jet or we'll crash!"

Scott looked at him blearily as Marcus dragged them away from the wall, jetting up then falling, up then falling, until he understood and helped him. It seems Marcus was heading to a ledge on a cliff so they alternate propelling each other. Scott jumped when the arc of Marcus's jump finished and they were about to fall and vice versa. They reached the cliff in this manner and they set down gently on a plain, among lavender grass and bright yellow green fern shoots.

Marcus moved closer to Scott and scanned him. "You've got a concussion. You may also have some whiplashes," he said from the readings. He instructed him to lie still. "Hold on, I'll start the med program." He tapped on his console. A little while later, Scott felt his headache lessening as his implants set to work. He rolled his shoulders testily as the strain disappeared.

Marcus waited for about fifteen minutes then asked Scott how he was doing. Scott answered he was fine, but Marcus made him do tests until he was satisfied that he had recovered enough to continue.

"Where are we?" Scott said, looking around. The grass stirred towards the wall just beyond them, where the boulders and debris still swirled as the wind howled. They had to stand firmly on the ground or else they'd be like the rocks, rolling towards the wall. But the air was calmer around them and the sky was clear around the beam of light from the object making the storm.

"It seems we've arrived. I'm not sure about the others, though." He tapped at his console again and listened at the comms.

Scott drew a ragged breath as he bent down and put his hands on his knees. "You think they're alive?" he asked.

"They may be at the other side. I don't know where we came from. The magnetic field of this planet's crazy, it's messing with our nav system. But I hope they are, or else, it's just us now." Marcus glanced up from his omni-tool and peered at him. "Scott," he called, his voice soft, "I know we've gone through pretty scary shit and we lost your old man but this isn't the time to panic. We'll think of that later. Right now, we-"

"I'm not panicking!" Scott protested. "And I know what the old man will say. He's my father. It's just…really tight in here." He turned away from Marcus' raised brow and looked around. After a moment, he stood up and asked as carelessly as he could, "Do you think the air's breathable?"

"There's a lot of oxygen around but there's also a lot of heavy gases," Marcus answered, his tone casual like his. "It's best not to take your helmet off for a whiff."

Scott looked at the wall of the storm at the distance, mountains of grey rock spinning around them. "And this is supposed to be our home?"

"We can't complain about that because the planet wasn't expecting us. Those long-range telescopes we got isn't equipped with sensors."

Scott looked around, taking in deeply their surroundings for the first time. The rocks around them were jagged and rough, like it's made of basalt. He craned his neck around and saw plants inside crevices, looking like glowing mushrooms and fern corals. It looked similar to the plants back on Earth, but he knew they weren't mushrooms and ferns. "Hard to believe we went here on a guess."

Marcus shrugged. "Well, we're here now." He tapped on his omni-tool a few more times then closed it. "No one's answering. I guess it's up to us now to shut whatever is causing this down," he said, looking at the beam of light just beyond them. He nodded at Scott and, with Marcus taking point, they started to climb the cliffs for a better view. At the summit, their omni-tool started crackling.

"The short range comm's working!" Marcus announced happily. "I think someone's nearby." He tapped at it. "Found a location," he said, pointing somewhere west of them.

They hurried over to the location, picking their way through the mountainside carefully, wary of the electrically charged rocks floating around them or passing through tunnels made by the clefts of the rocks, the giant glowing mushrooms on each side until they arrived at a gulley. As they went near, they heard someone speaking. Pleading.

Scott paused behind Marcus when he saw him raise a fist. He followed his lead, slinging his rifle in front of him as Marcus signaled them both to move forward silently. They arrived at a ledge where below, some strange equipment was scattered before a strange door. In the midst of them was someone wearing armor of white and blue stripes. One of their team.

"That's Greer, I think," Scott said. "But what is he doing?" He followed to where the man was staring and saw strange beings pointing something at him. They were barking at Greer in a strange language which the human answered by calmly repeating "I don't understand you. Help me understand you."

"Confirmed alien sighting," Marcus said, watching the aliens. They had their heads uncovered, showing grey skin, with some sort of greyish white bones protruding around their face and covering their head like a beret. Below the protruding forehead are two milky white eyes, a nose with a bony bridge and a thin mouth. They had their arms free, their armor looking like a vest and their legs bent backwards.

"Think it would get ugly?" Scott said, wiping the dew forming on his visor.

"Maybe. But we'll have to follow First Contact protocol." Marcus signaled him to take position to cover Greer, without alerting the aliens.

They watched as Greer pleaded at the aliens, hands raised up, insisting that he doesn't understand their language. "Should we help him out?" Scott whispered, looking warily at the front most alien. "We'll have to wait and see if they're hostile," Marcus said. "Watch out for their things. I think they're carrying guns."

They kept watch as Greer pleaded with the aliens. They barked louder, then one of them raised its weapon and pointed it toward Greer.

"Hostiles confirmed. Open fire," Marcus instructed, gunning down the one who raised its weapon. The aliens turned around at them and Greer dove out of sight. Scott and Marcus shot at the aliens from their vantage point, observing that they don't have shields. Marcus dropped a grenade at the midst of them and Scott sniped them as they attempted to jump away. "Like fish in a barrel," Marcus commented as he shot the last one who tried to run for Greer.

When the coast was clear, they moved down the ledge to join their team mate. Greer walked towards them with open arms. Marcus caught his hand, drew him close and hugged him. "Hey, man. Glad to see you survived," he said, their hands between them while his other hand tapped Greer on the back.

"Glad to see you two," Greer replied, and released him. "I thought for a minute there that I was a goner."

"Yep. Seems being a linguist isn't a help here," Marcus said, noting the ashy pallor of Greer's dark face.

"Lucky we're also fluent in guns, eh?" Greer said and grinned. "Dammit. A minute more and I would have picked up their language. But then, maybe I'd be dead." He glanced up and found Scott. He went to him and gave him a hug too. "Ah, Ryder junior. Thought you were a goner too."

"Yeah. Good thing Marcus here can't live without me," Scott answered and let him go.

"Yes. Marcus' always clingy that way," Greer said and grinned. Marcus raised his middle finger towards him. Then he looked down at the alien corpse before him. "First we go through some shit storm and now this. First Contact didn't go so well. At least it didn't go like the yahg."

"Could be worse," Marcus replied. "Remember the turians?"

Scott snorted. "Remember the batarians?"

Greer grinned. "Yeah. We humans just couldn't get the hang of First Contact, can't we? Oh, why can't we have a nice alien welcoming us warmly for once."

"Have you looked at your face?" Marcus teased.

"I had. Last time I checked, it's much better than yours." He opened his omni-tool and scanned the corpse. "Think they activated whatever's causing this storm?"

"What, like we did on relay 314?" Scott asked. He moved near the mysterious door and scanned it.

"Maybe. If we weren't careful, this may be a repeat of the First Contact War." He finished scanning and closed his omni-tool. "Anyway, we should get back with the others."

"Any idea where they are?" Martin asked, keeping watch as Scott finished with the mysterious door and moved on to the equipment scattered around.

The grin disappeared from Greer's face and he said solemnly, "Fisher and Markland are dead. The lightning blew up the console in their faces and last I saw; the shuttle didn't eject them."

They fell silent in their memory. "Shit," Scott cursed softly.

"We'll give them full honors later. Maybe right here in this motherfucking planet," Martin said and pointed at the sky, where two moons of Habitat 7 twinkled. "We'll call that Fisher and the other Markland."

Greer grinned as he too looked at it. "Yeah. The Balls of Fisher and Markland, whose balls are as big as the moons they are named for. They really 'hang a pair' over Habitat 7."

The mood restored, they got ready then Martin took point again.

"Where's Cora and Dad?" Scott asked as he brought up the rear. They followed the winding path of the mountains, careful not to overstep and lose their balance towards the abyss below.

"No idea. I got drifted away from them," Greer answered. "But our comm's coming online so one of them must be nearby." He tapped at his omni-tool and after a few tries someone answered.

"Harper here. I'm at a cliff overlooking the crash site," Cora said from the comms.

"Hey Cora. Glad to hear you're alive," Marcus answered as he fiddled with his omni-tool and pointed west.

"Me too. Glad to hear some of you made it."

"Yeah. Scott and Greer's here with me. But Fisher and Markland's gonna be missed."

"Greer? Greer survived?" she asked in surprise.

"I'm standing right here, sweetheart," Greer piped up. "Alive and kicking. And I ain't no fainting damsel," he reminded her petulantly.

Cora chuckled. "I'm sorry, Greer. Just that I didn't think anyone would survive after we got bounced around like that."

He accepted her apology then Scott cut in. "Cora, Scott here. Where's Alec?"

He felt fear like an icy finger of dread sliding on his back as seconds passed before Cora answered. "He's fine. He's off somewhere for a moment."

He exhaled softly the breath he didn't know he was holding, but Marcus did not feel as relieved as he was. He was frowning at the news. It was strange for their com specialist and troop leader to go off on his own without regrouping first.

"You need to come here and see this," Cora breathed.

The three exchanged looks. "Could be bad," Greer said. Marcus thought it over, then reluctantly answered Cora. "We'll be there in five. Marcus out."

* * *

AN: Sorry for the long absence. I was still fixing some things. Anyway, enjoy, and thanks to whitetiger62512 for looking this fic over.


	3. Chapter 3

They arrived at the site where their shuttle was laid to rest. They searched the smoking wreck for signs of their team mate, when Cora called through their comms. She was on a ledge up a cliff overlooking the crash site and waved her gun to get their attention. The glint of it alerted them and they found her waving at them, her white armor nearly blending in with the basalt cliff. They moved away and jumped up to her.

"Got any news for me?" Cora asked. Her armor had seen better days. As they do all.

"We have aliens," Greer said. He out up a holo of the corpses he's scanned. "And they're not friendly."

"I think we have two types of aliens," Scott said as he brought up holos of the contraptions and the strange door. "These ones seem to belong to our friends here," he said at the containers and wiring. Then he brought up the door, dark as obsidian. "And this one seems to be another."

Cora looked at the projections. Her mouth had upturned corners that made her look like she was perpetually amused, but they all know she was regarding their intel seriously.

"I don't know about the door but I know those ones," she said, nodding at the aliens. "We've run into some of them as soon as we touched down. I think they were going to take us somewhere, but Alec thought it was a bad idea and so we fought our way out of them. Anyway, that's not important right now. Alec isn't here because he found the structure causing the storm. We ran into it as we were on the way to the crash site. I was sent here to wait for you while he prepares something for it. He's waiting for us just beyond that ridge."

"How'd you two survive?" Marcus asked, curious. "As far as we know, you were thrown further in."

Cora picked herself up. "Yep. We got bounced around pretty badly. My biotics helped make it easier for us until luckily, we got thrown here. Alec and I bailed and we touched down at the other side," she said pointing somewhere behind them. "Fisher and Markland weren't so lucky."

"Was Fisher and Markland in there?" he asked, nodding at the shuttle.

"Yes. I got their badges out, don't worry." Cora said.

Marcus nodded. "We'll come back and give them a proper burial as soon as we're done."

They were about to jump down when they heard something roaring above. They looked out and up, where they saw a strange ship appear and hover near their crashed shuttle. Its doors opened and aliens dropped off, then started sweeping the area.

"Shit," Scott cursed as they moved to cover. He peered down as he asked, "What now?"

"Let's wait and not let our positions away," Marcus said as he picked up his rifle and pointed it towards the aliens below. They watched as the aliens reached the wreck and searched around it.

Then one of them looked up, saw one of them and yelled.

"They've found us! Open fire!" Greer yelled as he dropped the one who gave them away. The aliens scattered from the incoming fire, barking something. Their ship opened again and some sort of armored lizards bounded out. It had bone-like structure protruding from its head like those from a hammer head shark and they ran on four legs, their tails with a spike at the tip swishing behind them.

"They've got some sort of dogs," Scott said as he fired at them. The dog yelped as his bullets hit its flank and leap out of the way-

Then it vanished.

"What the-?" Scott said, staring at the place it had been moments before, but incoming fire made him duck back into cover. One bigger than the rest was holding a machine gun, and it was laying suppression fire on them. They shot back in retaliation, but their rounds just pinged off its shield.

Scott fired back on it when something rammed him from behind. He turned around and found himself face to face with the alien dog. He turned his attention to it, backing away, but it again lunged at him, showing sharp teeth as it snarled. Shots whizzed past him, past where his head had been as the dog tried to bowl him over. Worse, it brought a pack.

They were snapping at his legs as he shot them uselessly, the bullets bouncing off their armored hide, when one of them tried to lunge at his throat. But a singularity appeared at their midst and they went floating. Then they burst into bits of bone and flesh as Cora barreled into them, sending pieces of them back down onto their masters.

"Nice," Greer grunted as he wiped green blood off his visor. "Nothing like alien blood for your first bath."

"Think you can take care of that?" Marcus said, nodding at the one with the machine gun.

"You'll need to drop his shield first."

Scott fiddled with his omni-tool until it changed his ammo to a disruptor. Then he started firing until its shield fizzled. Cora threw a singularity at it and as it and its friends floated, Marcus and Greer picked them off.

They mopped up the rest and when everything was quiet once again, they went down and examined the corpses, with Scott taking particular attention to the dogs.

"Alec and SAM should be in range," Cora said, opening her omni-tool and tapped at it. "SAM, can you hear me?"

Static then the com crackled and they heard the AI answer. "Yes, Cora," it said as toneless as ever.

"We're sending you some samples of aliens we encountered. Can you make an analysis?"

"Information received. Analyzing now." They waited for a few moments for it to speak again. "Analysis complete. The samples are of organic origin, but I am detecting multiple and distinct genetic strands in both samples. Both of them has genetic data from other lifeforms. Do you need further analysis?"

"No. That's all we need to know right now. So, what does that mean?"

"It seems that their strange genetic make-up is making them adapt to the current environment."

Marcus raised a brow at SAM's conclusion. "Huh. I was wondering why they weren't wearing helmets," he said. Scott spoke into his omni-tool. "SAM, where's Dad?"

"Alec Ryder is 100 meters east of where you are. I'm sending the navpoint to you." All of them looked down as the navpoint simultaneously appeared on their maps.

"Well, I think there's nothing more to see here," Marcus said and closed his tool. "Get everything you can carry and let's move out."

* * *

They headed northeast of the wreck, heading downhill by dropping down ledges. They reached a gap and leaped across the chasm, then continued down, passing alien corpses as they did. Scott noted the burn marks by incendiary rounds. He was impressed that his father overcame them single-handed but that's what anyone would expect from an N7. They headed south until they arrived at a cliff and jumped to the ledge where Alec Ryder crouched. They moved carefully to his side. Alec gave no sign that he noticed them, not taking his eyes off where he was looking.

They followed his gaze and saw below them the tower. It was blocky, made of straight edges and an unknown dark material with glowing lines etched into its surface. The alien's facility was built around it, distinguished by its bulbous design and dull, dusty green color. Its openings were made of archways, where ramps connected them from one another. One of them led to platform near the tower.

But they could not just go in, for a force field stood around it and guards patrolled the field between it and them.

"Glad you made it," Alec said, his eyes still observing the facility.

"Us too, Sir," Greer answered while Scott stayed silent. Alec did not acknowledge it at first, then he looked to where Scott was. "You alright, son?"

"I'm fine," Scott said stiffly.

Alec looked him over, his dark eyes not giving his thoughts away. But Cora moved to his side and asked, "What's the plan, sir?"

Alec turned away from him and nodded below them. "The storm's coming from that tower," he said, pointing at the energy beam emanating from it, causing the sky to rumble and burst in lightning. "Somehow it's causing a storm even beyond the planet, trapping the Hyperion."

"Yes. That tower is caught in a feedback loop with the anomaly around the planet. Together, they're disrupting the atmosphere with undirected energy," SAM supplied.

Marcus looked from the top of the tower then up towards the sky. "Did this activate as soon as our ark came near this planet?"

Alec turned to him. The others followed his gesture with puzzled looks. "What are you thinking?"

"Just that it's really convenient that this activated as soon as we appeared. Maybe this is the aliens' weapon to keep us away."

"Maybe. Maybe not. But they made it clear the chance for diplomacy is over as soon as we landed. We have no other options but to take control of it by force." He paused, then added, "But I'll keep that in mind, Marcus."

Alec may still be skeptical about the cause of the Hyperion's problem, but Marcus' suggestion has only served to enhance the four's resolve. There was no question in their minds that the aliens meant harm to them and with doubt finally wiped away, their guns would be firing faster than before.

"We need to get in there and figure a way to shut it down," Alec added. "Or we won't be able to call for extraction and the Hyperion is dead." Who is speaking here?

Greer nodded at the aliens guarding the perimeter. "What about that force field?" he asked, noting the aliens patrolling outside and inside of it.

"See the generators over there?" Alec said, pointing at the alien's equipment. "It seems they're using it to generate the force field. I've rigged the foundations to blow. It should bring it down."

Scott was curious how he managed to sneak up past those aliens to plant bombs on their generators but there was a more pressing concern. The field was surrounded by electrically charged rocks. "It also means we're running into a lightning minefield. We'll also face incoming fire if we don't pick some of them off first," he said, pointing at the guards outside the fence.

"Which would give those inside time to prepare a counterattack," Alec replied. "If we go in, we go in fast and hard."

"I can take care of it," Cora said, confident of her biotics, which was stronger than Alec's artificially induced power. It was the only thing she can best Alec at. "So just run and gun, then?"

"We have no other options. The explosives are guaranteed to get their attention and we need to move, fast. Captain Dunn's informed me that the ark's about to break apart. We'll split into two teams. Cora, you'll lead one. Scott, you're with me. Are you ready?" They nodded, so Alec tapped his omni-tool and the generators exploded. They immediately jumped down and as Scott ran beside his father, he heard him say, "SAM, load biotic amp interface."

Cora produced a biotic shield as Marcus and Greer ran alongside her. Alec did the same for him and Scott.

The aliens turned to face them and opened fire at them as they ran. The biotic shields held, protecting them from the incoming fire as well as the electricity weaving through the ground, but halfway through Cora's barrier started collapsing.

"I can't hold on much longer!" she yelled as they were near the facility. Then the shield dropped and she tripped. Marcus dragged her up, yelling at her to go on when an explosion knocked them off into the building. The air smelled of fire and their shield generators emitted sparks. They tapped on their omni-tool to start the self-repair program. Their armor stopped smoking, then they looked back to where they were standing just a moment ago.

Greer was thrown far to their side. He did not move and his visor was clouded over with smoke. Marcus pointed his omni-tool at him and scanned him. "Shit, he's dead. Greer's dead."

On the other side, Alec and Scott reached the building. "Cora! Status!" Alec yelled as he jumped over the crates and into the building, with Scott just behind him. They crouched back to back as Alec said, "SAM, load combat profile," and fired away while Scott dealt with those inside.

"Greer's dead. Lightning got him!" Marcus answered, putting out his hand over the barrel and laid out suppression fire. As the aliens went to cover, Cora staggered up and then charged into a group. She then slammed on the ground, sending the aliens flying. She back away and fired at them with her shotgun as Marcus picked off the rest.

"Clear! Let's move!" Alec said. He took one second to look at where Greer's body lay, surrounded with static then gave a look at Cora. She nodded, drew a barrier around her and darted out towards his body to strip off his badge. Alec saw to it that she came back, then sprinted forward inside the building. "Don't let them catch us! Keep up!"

The three scrambled after him as Alec gunned their way further inside. They emerged on pathways over the cliff, with more aliens firing at them. They pushed forward until they reached the entrance to the tower.

Alec scanned around and found a strange console. It was dark colored, unlike the aliens' green tinged equipment and shaped roughly like an equilateral triangle, a point facing them, with octagons on the surface inscribed by an unknown language.

"What now, sir?" Cora asked as they assumed positions to look out for more aliens coming out from the building.

"I need to decipher the language," Alec said running his scanner over it and instructing SAM.

Marcus looked up and yelled. "There's more coming up from the ramp!"

"Cover me while SAM is decrypting!"

The three shot at the aliens coming from both paths as SAM informed them of the status of the decryption. Sweat formed on Scott's brow as he fired while SAM counted its progress. Aliens after aliens dropped and it seemed to be taking forever.

Finally, it was finished. Alec fiddled with it until the door opened…and got stuck.

"It's jammed! Scott, I need you here!" Alec yelled as he put his hands under it and started pulling up.

"Go! We'll take care of this!" Cora shouted over the firefight. She laid suppression fire as Scott ran towards his father. He took hold of the door and they pushed it upward until they can squeeze through. They ran inside to where another console was waiting.

As Alec instructed SAM to decode again, Scott looked around. Inside, the firefight became muted. It was dark, but the place was illuminated by the strange alien glyphs like the one on the console, glowing green against the obsidian walls. He felt like they had fallen in an alien cave.

Then a burst of light came from his side and Scott squinted at it. A holo of a big triangle was floating in front of his father.

Alec stepped back, the light of the holo shining on his shocked face. "It's not a weapon. It's just...an atmospheric regulator."

"Yes," SAM confirmed, seeing the same results Alec was seeing inside his head.

"What?" Scott asked. It seems an eternity passed as they stared at it but then their radio cackled. Amidst the sound of gunfire, Cora asked them how long are they going to take.

Alec shook his head and answered her. "Not long. We're almost done." He reached out, touching the holo where it broke into more glyphs. His hand searched around, the glyphs glowing as he touched them. He finally found what he was searching for and grasped it. The glyphs went solid, and the ground below them rumbled. Then it went silent.

Scott ran over to his father's side. "You did it, Dad!" he said, beaming.

Alec smiled at his son, the first time he did when they arrived at Andromeda. "SAM did the heavy lifting."

SAM explained that it has only partially decrypted the language, but Alec did not hear it. He kept looking at his son.

He looked so much like the little boy he remembered, the son who looked up to him as if he was the greatest that ever lived; not the surly young man who looked at him with eyes full of silent resentment. They may be family, yet they act like strangers around each other and he didn't know why. He wasn't around them when they were children he knew that much, and so he hoped that he would be so here. He was about to say something, perhaps, to try to start repairing their relationship; to bring back what should have been. To start over. That whatever happened between them, they can make a new start in this new galaxy, when something came whistling around them and before they could figure that out, they were thrown outside, past the platform and onto the cliffs below.


	4. Chapter 4

When the beam of light stopped, the wall of wind circling the structure collapsed, hurling the boulders away. It also left a vacuum behind, which, with a snap, sucked the air around the structure and inside of it, pulling anything not tied down...like Alec and Scott.

Scott yelled as the wind knocked him around. He used his jetpack to regain his balance, but it was too late; he hit the ground and tumbled. Momentum carried him forward until he felt something solid in front of him, then his visor broke. He felt pain explode as shards buried between his forehead and crown. In shock, he breathed in. Then everything went hazy as the poisonous air filled his lungs while blood trickled down into his eyes. He held his breath and searched for his omni-tool to fix his visor, but his hands kept slipping, slick with his blood. The lights went hazy, then brightened then dimmed.

His nose and throat began to burn and he grasped at his neck. He remembered Markus' warning about the air and so tried to hold his breath again, but his lungs hurt so much he was forced to cough. He heard himself wheezing as his body took control completely, taking in the air along with its poison. And as the poison sped through his veins, he lost his lucidity more and more.

A strange orange light was coming towards him.

"We need evac, now!" he heard it say as it came near. He squinted at it, until the mist parted and he realized the light was Alec limping toward him. He called out to him unintelligibly, then writhed on the ground as his blood filled with the poison.

"They're sending down a shuttle! ETA in twenty!" he heard Cora say from Alec's omni-tool.

"Scott!" Alec yelled as he scooted beside him. He turned him to the side as Scott heaved.

"Hang on! We're coming!" Cora promised, but Scott couldn't care anymore. The world turned hazy and he felt an incredible lightness, as if the mist was carrying him away. He turned to Alec's face, unable to speak. He felt an urge that he should say something to this person looking at him, hurting.

Ah, yes. He remembered. The word was "goodbye."

At this, Alec's face stopped looking pained.

"We don't have that long," Alec murmured. He ignored Cora asking for clarifications and reached up. "Deep breaths, son," he said, then he removed his helmet and put it on him.

Scott breathed in the clean air from the helmet and by degrees, his vision cleared. The world seemed substantial again, memories started flooding back and-he understood what just happened. Alec was holding his breath as he typed in his override codes.

"What…are…you-" he coughed at Alec. Alec ignored him until he finished, then looked at him as if he was sorry.

"Initiating transfer," SAM chimed.

Scott screamed as SAM flooded his brain. He did not feel his father hold him tightly as he thrashed. Through the haze, he saw his father hold him up and look at him with pride. "I love you, son. Tell Sara her father loves her too." He was saying something else but the pain in his head grew louder and louder until that was all he knew.

* * *

When he opened his eyes again, pain was all he knew.

-"He's having a seizure!"

-"The connection is overloading."

-"Quick! Get him to SAM node. It's the only chance he got."

He saw Dr Lexi and Dr Carlyle over him, shouting over each other, their hands moving in front of his body. He raised his hand feebly to touch them but Dr Lexi caught it and held it against his chest, without looking at him, intent on something beside him. He tried to turn his head, but the white-hot pain returned until he lapsed again into unconsciousness.

* * *

Scott opened his eyes and saw a white ceiling staring back down at him. He raised himself up and found he had been lying before SAM's node. The room was dark, half-illuminated by SAM's projection and he turned around. He squinted to see the AI's form; swimming, blinking lights, like fireflies, forming something like a brain, as he puzzled over why was he lying there instead of a more appropriate place like his quarters.

"Hey. You're awake," someone said hoarsely.

Scott turned to his side and saw Marcus emerge from the shadows. His face was bathed with orange light from his omni-tool as he informed someone on the other line that Scott was awake.

"What happened?" Scott asked. His throat felt dry. Marcus reached behind him and poured him a cup of water from a carafe and gave it to him. He took it and tasted lukewarm water. While he drank, he saw there was a cuff on one of his wrist and he picked at it, which sent the console beside him beeping until he left it alone.

Marcus examined him, gauging his reaction. He looked tired. His eyebags look bigger from the shadows cast by the half-light. "Do you remember us setting down in Habitat 7?" he asked him carefully.

Scott frowned and thought hard. Slowly, the memories came back fast and hard-the descent onto the planet, finding Greer, Cora Alec, then assaulting the alien base, Greer dying, reaching the tower while Cora and Marcus covered them, deactivating the tower, then getting sucked out of it and onto the cliffs below-

"I got thrown off a cliff then my visor broke. Then someone came for me," he said, then his eyes widened in realization and he yelled. "Dad! Where's Dad? Where's my father?" he asked. Fear constricting his throat as he remembered what happened before he fainted.

Marcus looked pained but before he could answer, the door opened and Dr Lexi and Cora walked in.

"I'm so glad you woke up," the asari greeted, going to the console at his side swiftly. "I thought we would lose you."

"Where's my father?"

Dr Lexi hesitated, her fingers frozen atop the console. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "He didn't make it."

His mind reeled. So, it was true. All of it. His father limping towards him as he gasped for air. Calling for help as he puked his lungs out. Then giving him his own helmet as he said goodbye.

Dr Lexi placed a comforting hand on his back. "He was very brave. What he did-what you all did saved us all. We managed to get away from the thing holding us back around Habitat 7."

"He sacrificed himself for me," he said, his tone hollow.

"Of course, he did. You're his child; he cares about you."

Scott was silent on it.

"Before he died, he transferred SAM to you," Dr. Lexi continued. She looked satisfied with the console's reports and moved to his side to take the cuff off. "That's why you're here. The connection was too much for your implant. You were convulsing when Cora and the rest found you. You died a couple of times on the way and during treatment, and we were running out of options so we put you here hoping that it will stabilize your connection. It did but something's different this time. The implant had overloaded and now, SAM was connected to you on a deeper level. SAM and your neural network had merged, and extracting it now will kill you."

"That was what I was going to tell you," Cora blurted out. "You're the new Pathfinder," she announced, drawing a reproachful look from Dr Lexi. But she could not take it back now. He needed to know this. They needed him to know this.

He went still, then stared at Cora.

"I thought you're next in line?" he asked her, surprised.

Cora's jaw hardened. "Yes. But SAM is needed for the Pathfinder and so it comes with the title. Since it can't be separated from you now, we have no other choice but name you the Pathfinder."

Scott stared at her and then dropped his eyes. Then he raised it again to hers. "I'm sorry, Cora. I didn't intend to be Pathfinder like this."

Cora pinched her lips together but she nodded. "If you're ready, Captain Dunn wanted to speak with you."

Dr Lexi intervened. "We understand if you need more time to think about this-"

"Is Sara awake yet?"

The three exchanged looks. Then Dr Lexi turned back to him. "Do you want to see her?" she asked gently.

* * *

Scott was sitting beside Sara's bed, watching his sibling laid on the bed, breathing softly, eyes closed, as Dr Carlyle was explained to him her condition. The turbulence had caused a loss of gravity in the med bay so her pod was thrown around, causing it to malfunction, interrupting her reawakening cycle which sent her into a coma. Dr. Carlyle informed him that her condition had not improved but from the signs, he was optimistic that she'd wake naturally.

Scott barely heard him. As Dr Carlyle prattled on, Scott took her hand and put it on his cheek. He wanted to let her know, in some way, that he was here and somehow, she'll understand what he felt and know she was not alone. As he did now.

"Thank you, Doctor," he said, for the doctor had generously allowed him some minutes in silence and ignored his lapse without offense.

"No problem, Scott. We'll watch over your sister and let you know about her progress," the doctor assured him.

Scott nodded and turned away where Marcus and Cora were waiting for him. He walked between them, leading them out and into the ark's main conference room. Inside, Captain Dunn was sitting alone at the head of the oval table, her mind on something, as stars flew on the screen on both side of the wall and their light reflected dimly on the table's fake oak finish. She had an apprehensive look on her face, which she smoothed away as soon as they entered.

"Scott Ryder," she greeted, rising from her seat. "I'm sorry about your loss."

He nodded. "I appreciate your concern, Captain," he answered.

She gestured to them their seats. As they seated themselves, she looked their new Pathfinder over.

Though she was truly sorry for Scott, she mentally rebuked Alec for putting him in this situation in the first place. There's a reason why the military don't let people from the same family together in a small unit like theirs and now they've ended up with this as predicted.

She did not show it however, by face or manner, as she took her place beside Scott. No need to destroy his morale when their lives depend on his untested shoulders. Though she has doubts of Scott's credential as Pathfinder due to his age and limited experience, she kept quiet about it. Unlike civilians, they assume competence in one of their own because they are one of their own. Only if there were doubts of his conduct on the job will she deem it the time to challenge him. But right now, he gave her no reason to ask if he was alright. Besides, time will definitely tell whether he was worthy of being Pathfinder... or not.

"We need to talk about your new role as Pathfinder, as I did with your father." She turned to Cora beside him. "I assume you've explained to him his primary duties?"

"We'd briefed him of the important parts on the way here," Cora answered.

"Good." She nodded at her then turned back to Scott. "Then I'll just skip to pressing matters. Right now, we're somewhere in the Heleus cluster. Habitat 7 is supposed to be our home, but it's too dangerous to return there now. Not with the thing hanging around it."

"Have you found out what it was?" he asked, with a glance on the fading bruise on her forehead.

"Some of our scientists are working on that and so far, we don't know much about it. It is invisible to our sensors until we hit it. Even so, we can only tell it by the distortion of star field. We've seen what happened in Habitat 7, but we reviewed the feeds again. Our analysts conclude that it did not originate from there, only that it reacted to the light from Habitat 7." While the Pathfinder Team was shutting it down, the Hyperion had managed not to get sheared off in half with some carefully managed wiggling. There were a lot of damaged sections because of it, but at least the ark was intact and ready to go FTL as soon as the away team were ready.

"What you did down at Habitat 7 managed to loosen its grip on us. We had barely enough time to wait for your team and go FTL before it seized us again.'' She glanced at the datapad where the reports concerning the incident were piled up. "I've read the report about what happened with your team at Habitat 7 and I want to ask about the tower causing it."

"It was doing something with the atmosphere so I think it's some sort of stabilizer? There were aliens around it too. SAM might tell you more."

"We think the aliens have turned it on, causing it to interact violently with the surrounding space and attract that thing," Cora explained.

She nodded. "Noted. So to continue, we escaped from Habitat 7. I've decided to look for the Nexus and had a team comb the surrounding systems. A few days ago, we picked up a faint exhaust trail, matching the exhaust from the Nexus drive. It leads to a system a few light years from us."

"So what do you need me to do?"

"We'll arrive at their location tomorrow," she said, putting away the datapad. "Prepare your team. After Habitat 7, we don't know what to expect."


	5. Chapter 5

Scott was sitting beside Sara's bed, watching his sibling laid on the bed, breathing softly, eyes closed, her dark face serene, as Dr Carlyle was explained to him her condition. The turbulence had caused a loss of gravity in the med bay so her pod was thrown around, causing it to malfunction, interrupting her reawakening cycle which sent her into a coma. Dr. Carlyle informed him that her condition had not improved but from the signs, he was optimistic that she'd wake naturally.

Scott barely heard him. As Dr Carlyle prattled on, Scott took her hand and put it on his cheek. He wanted to let her know, in some way, that he was here and somehow, she'll understand what he felt and know she was not alone. As he does now.

"Thank you, Doctor," he said, for the doctor had generously allowed him some minutes in silence and ignored his lapse without offense.

"No problem, Scott. We'll watch over your sister and let you know about her progress," the doctor assured him.

Scott nodded and turned away where Marcus and Cora were waiting for him. He walked between them, leading them out into the ark's main conference room. Inside, Captain Dunn was sitting alone, her mind on something. She had an apprehensive look on her face, which she smoothed away as soon as they entered.

"Scott Ryder," she greeted, rising from her seat. "I'm sorry about your loss."

He nodded. "I appreciate your concern, Captain," he answered politely.

She led them onto their seats. As they seated themselves, she looked him over.

Though she was truly sorry for Scott, she mentally rebuked Alec for putting him in this situation in the first place. There's a reason why the military don't let people from the same family together in a small unit like theirs and now they've ended up with this as predicted.

She did not show it however, by face or manner, as she took her place beside Scott. No need to destroy his morale when their lives depend on his untested shoulders. Though she has doubts of Scott's credential as Pathfinder due to his age and limited experience, she kept quiet about it. Unlike civilians, they assume competence in one of their own because they are one of their own. Only if there were doubts of his conduct on the job will she deem it the time to challenge him. But right now, he gave her no reason to ask if he was alright. Besides, time will definitely tell whether he was worthy of being Pathfinder... or not.

"We need to talk about your new role as Pathfinder, as I did with your father." She turned to Cora beside him. "I assume you've explained to him his primary duties?"

"We'd briefed him of the important parts on the way here," Cora answered.

"Good." She nodded at her then turned back to Scott. "Then I'll just skip to pressing matters. Right now, we're somewhere in the Heleus cluster. Habitat 7 is supposed to be our home, but it's too dangerous to return there now. Not with the thing hanging around it."

"Have you found out what it was?" he asked, with a glance on the purple lump on her forehead.

"Some of our scientists are working on that and so far, we don't know much about it. It is invisible to our sensors until we hit it. Even so, we can only tell it by the distortion of star field. We've seen what happened in Habitat 7, but we reviewed the feeds again and so far, our analysts conclude that it did not originate from there, only that it reacted to the light from Habitat 7." While the Pathfinder Team was shutting it down, the Hyperion had managed not to get sheared off in half with some carefully managed wiggling. There were a lot of damaged sections because of it, but at least the ark was intact and ready to go FTL as soon as the away team were ready.

"What you did down at Habitat 7 managed to loosen its grip on us. We had barely enough time to wait for your team and go FTL before it seized us again.'' She glanced at the datapad where the reports concerning the incident were piled up. "I've read the report about what happened with your team at Habitat 7 and I want to ask about the tower causing it."

"It was doing something with the atmosphere so I think it's some sort of stabilizer? There were aliens around it too. SAM might tell you more."

"We think the aliens have turned it on, causing it to interact violently with the surrounding space and attract that thing," Cora explained.

She nodded. "Noted. So to continue, we escaped from Habitat 7. I've decided to look for the Nexus and had a team comb the surrounding systems. A few days ago, we picked up a faint exhaust trail, matching the exhaust from the Nexus drive. It leads to a system a few light years from us."

"So what do you need me to do?"

"We'll arrive at their location tomorrow," she said, putting away the datapad. "Prepare your team. After Habitat 7, we don't know what to expect."

* * *

The rest of the day was spent on debriefing then preparing for the mission ahead. There was no time to think about his father and sister. Not that he wanted to. He welcomed the distraction, even after realizing that twenty thousand souls were now dependent on him.

After the briefing, he declined Marcus' invitation for dinner at the mess hall, pleading a headache. There was a low thrumming inside his head and the thought of food made him nauseous. After promising to go to Dr. Lexi, he left them at the tram and was about to go to the med bay, but stopped at the thought of talking to the doctor. Talking to anyone, really. He thought then that what he needed was to sleep. So he went straight to the Pathfinder team quarters and stood at the empty common room before the sleeping rooms.

The place was as they left it. There were datapads strewn about on the coffee table where probably Fischer was reading on the latest engineering news while on his synthetic cigarette. The remote control was wedged on the side of the sofa, where probably Markland and Greer would be fighting for control of it. There was a line of dirt at the edge of the coffee table, where someone would put their boot up in time for Cora to come by and smack it off. But not so loud of course, because they might bring out the old man back at his cabin' study table and reprimand them with that cold crankiness Scott experienced all his life.

He could not believe they were gone.

He went to the small kitchen to the side of the room to get a drink of water. There, their coffee cups still waited in the sink, waiting for him the grunt to wash them up. He filled a glass from the dispenser and drank, then let his glass join the others. his hand shook and he put his other hand on the lip of the sink to steady him.

In that small, silent room, he took the time to now think about his father and sister.

He finished wiping his eyes when he heard someone come in and recognized Cora and Marcus voices. He heard them murmur in low voices then stopped at the middle of the room.

"Oh, Scott isn't in yet?" he heard Marcus say. His footsteps grew farther, the doors opening. He went back to the common room, coming nearer so Scott quickly wiped at his eyes. But Marcus did not go in the kitchen but instead went and sat on the sofa, tired from today's meeting. The sofa sagged beneath him as he sat opposite Cora, who leaned forward and put her elbows on the coffee table, rested her chin on her hands then sighed deeply.

"Marcus, are we going to die?" she said after a while.

Marcus smirked at her. "Giving up already?"

"No. Just seeing reality. We've barely arrived but we lost most of our team. On top of that, we lost our Pathfinder who's the most experienced of us all."

"Yeah. This really sucks," Marcus commiserated. "But we'll pull through. Don't worry," he said cheerfully.

She smiled at him. "Always the optimist, huh?"

He grinned. "Never say die."

A pause, then she asked, "What do you think about Scott?"

Marcus cocked his head, furrowing his brow and narrowing his eyes. "He's alright," he concluded. "Not very experienced, but quick to pick up. It's hard to know what he's thinking, though. He keeps to himself." He paused, then snickered. "Loads warmer than old Iceberg, though."

Cora smiled at the nickname of her mentor, partly from the number of careers he had sunk from the turian Hierarchy, their one-time enemy and partly from his cold demeanor. Then her face went serious again. "He doesn't seem pleased about the job when we told him about replacing Alec," she commented with a slight edge to her tone.

"Give him time. He just saw his father die," Marcus answered, nonchalant. "Besides, I wouldn't be eager in his shoes. We were all prepared for worst case scenarios and it happened. I'd be scared too when suddenly a thousand lives depended on me."

Cora did not look pleased from his answer.

"Why? What's wrong?"

Cora's lips thinned and she took her time to immediately answer him. "I'm really sorry for Scott," she said slowly, "but I just wondered…if Alec would have chosen me to be Pathfinder."

"Ah," Marcus said, the chair creaking as he leaned back. "We weren't there when they hit the ravine. As I see it, it was his life or Scott's. He chose his son," Marcus said to soften the blow. "I hate to break it to you, Cora, but I thought Alec would not have chosen you over his children."

Her eyes went wide and she looked hurt. Out of all of them bar Scott, Cora was the one around Alec the longest that they thought of her as his protégé. But it was before Scott joined them and he knew even if she didn't realize it yet, that she was never going to succeed him.

"No, nothing's wrong with you," he assured her. "You're a great part of the team, Cora. You've dependable and smart and you're a great medic on top of your powers. We were lucky to have you." She smiled a little.

"You don't need to flatter me," she said.

"I'm not. I'm just telling the truth. But remember that Alec never taught us personally? So as soon as Scott joined us and he guided him himself, I knew then that Alec wanted him as his successor. At the lightning field, when he took Scott with him, I knew then that he was showing him the ropes."

Cora bowed her head and looked away.

"Don't feel too bad about it," Marcus continued. "It happens in the Alliance and it's normal on civilian organizations. We're civilians now so don't expect they'd care too much about hierarchy around here."

"I guess you're right," Cora said and sighed, then rested her chin in her hands. "After Greer, I think I'm not cut out for being a Pathfinder."

"You did everything you can. Greer wasn't your fault. He was just not lucky," Marcus said. "And if I knew that guy, he would have told you to shut up about it or he'll think you're so desperately in love with him."

Cora snorted. Greer did not like overly fussy people and he would turn them away by making it look like their interest was the effect of his powerful charisma.

"Shit, this sucks," she repeated, but she raised her head and sighed. "Anyway, we should go to sleep. There's a lot of things we need to do tomorrow."

"Yep," Marcus said, standing up. "Don't wanna miss why the Nexus is missing. I hope they've fared better than us."

"I hope so too. I don't know if I can take more bad news after what we just went through."

They said goodnight to each other and went to the rooms, where they had one each with half of their team gone. When the door hissed shut, Scott crouched down, and put his face in his hands, in anger and despair.

* * *

The next day, they found the Nexus orbiting a gas giant. But they would have mistaken it for floating junk, not a station by the way it looked. What they expected was a station composed of two half-cylindrical sides being rotated by a ring at the center. They expected it was fully built, but what was in front of them now was riddled with holes, its parts hanging off and floating in space.

Scans indicated that it had sustained heavy damage. They stared in shock as it hung listlessly in orbit.

_What happened here? Why is it so...so...dilapidated? Did it encounter the mysterious thing too? Or did something worse happen?_

"Nexus control, this is Hyperion requesting clearance to dock. Come in, Nexus," Lani said, tapping at her console as they stared at the hollowed tube-like station on the screen. Static. She tried again, but the same thing happened and she looked behind to Captain Dunn for direction.

"Take us in, Lani," the captain said evenly but her fingers were digging into the arm rest. As Lani complied, Dunn turned to Scott standing on the railing above her. "Is your team ready?"

Scott nodded. "We'd be at the docks." He nodded at his team beside him and with a nod from the captain, they went out of the bridge and into the docking bay. They put on their armor and got their gear and started checking as they waited for Lani to tell them that they have docked. After a few minutes, she gave the signal and they raised their weapons and then walked through the connecting duct.

They arrived at the door. Cora and Marcus positioned themselves on both sides as Scott hacked it. As soon as the door opened, Scott dashed inside as Cora and Marcus swept the sides. Nothing jumped out so with a signal, Scott led them in, keeping quiet as possible. "Eyes, peeled," he reminded them and they swept the corridors of the station. It was pitch dark and silent. Nothing stirred; the air was stale and still.

"It's empty. Where are the people?" Scott whispered but his voice still echoed in the silent corridors.

"Don't see signs of a fight," Cora commented, looking at crates piled haphazardly around the pristine white walls, free of scrapes, soot or bullet holes.

"A plague?" Marcus suggested, his eyes scanning the other side.

"Not likely," Scott answered, the light from his scanner falling on the potted plants on corners. It shone back green and healthy. "The environmental controls are working."

They emerged into an open area, with a cluster of trees at the center and a veranda at their right. What lay beyond it, they didn't know, for it was covered with some sort of rolling door. There was a locked door beyond them with scanners on both side. They turned to their left and saw a door far away, flanked by counters on both sides and stacked with crates. There were also stairs up the wall beside them leading to the next level above. It was blocked with crates.

They looked at each other and Scott signaled that they should try the door beyond them. They moved quietly, heading to the door when they loked to their left again and saw open space. They shone their omni-tool at it and beds of plants were placed here and there. There was another door going inside.

They stopped, debating where they should go when they heard a faint buzzing sound. They walked back up and saw someone was fixing the wiring from high up. Someone with two legs, a torso and two arms. A human, wearing Initiative gear.

Scott stopped crouching and put the muzzle down. "Hey! Over here!" he shouted, waving his hand. The man looked around, surprised, nearly dropping from his perch. Then he saw them. He jumped down and met them at the bottom.

Scott introduced themselves. "Scott Ryder, Pathfinder of the Hyperion. This is Cora Harper and Marcus Zola."

The man blinked several times before he could answer. "Pathfinder? Hyperion? You-You're not one of us?" The man started choking but he remembered how important this was. "Kandros need to know this. Hell-everyone needs to know this," he said excitedly and tapped at his omni-tool. "Anselm to Kandros. The Hyperion has arrived. I repeat, the Hyperion has arrived. Their pathfinder is here with me." Static, then a flanging voice answered. "Hyperion? Shit-keep them there and wait for me. I'll tell the others."

Anselm's omni-tool went dark and he turned back to them. He looked at them as if he was about to cry. "You're the best thing we've seen in years."

Marcus stepped forward and placed his hands on his shoulders. "It's alright, now. We've got you, man," he reassured him, looking kindly into his eyes. He released him and looked him over then gave a pat on his shoulder. "Are we good?"

Anselm nodded. He was about to say something when they heard claw-like tapping getting louder. They looked around and saw a turian emerge from the blocked off door and running towards them. The avian dinosaur-like alien with a metallic carapace skidded to a stop in front of them. "Spirits, it really is true," he murmured, the mandibles on his jaw twitching. He walked forward and stood in front of Ryder.

"Tiran Kandros. Nexus Security," he said, his dark eyes glittering from his grey face plates, sky-blue stripes across his cheek and plunging down his mouth and chin. "Sorry about not preparing a welcome party. We were doing critical repairs and thought it safe to leave dock control for a moment."

"Where is everyone?" Marcus asked.

"I've informed the rest and they'd be expecting you at the ops center. Follow me, I'll explain on the way."

They waved goodbye at Anselm and jogged beside the turian to the tram station. "So what happened here? Why is it so dark?" Scott asked.

The turian looked ahead grimly. "A lot of things happened. You'll get the details later but let's just say we've lost more than half of our people. The rest of us are doing their best to keep this ship together which is difficult considering that it's leaking like a rusty bucket."

They reached the tram station and went in one of the compartments. Kandros tapped on the screen and then they were moving.

"I have to warn you that you won't be meeting the senior leadership," Kandros continued. "They were all dead or missing shortly after we arrived."

"So who are we meeting?" Cora asked.

"Some people are filling in. Even I'm not supposed to be in security and yet here I am."

"We've run into some sort of anomaly on the way to Habitat 7. We've also lost some people," Scott informed him.

"You've also ran into that?" Kandros wondered softly. "What happened at Habitat 7?"

"We couldn't go and settle there with it hanging over it. It was ripping the planet apart."

"I see," Kandros said. The tram came into a stop. "We're here," he said, and led the way inside.

The operations center was as dark as the habitation deck, but they could see people working on their consoles, scrambling to tell the others that the Hyperion has arrived and prepare to receive them. The people stopped and gaped as they walked up the stairs above the station, then someone barked sharply and they scurried off. They reached the platform above and stood in what seems to be an ops center, with a big screen on the wall and consoles spread out before it. Before the wall, stood three people directing orders. The three noticed them and turned to face them. As he looked from face to face, Scott concluded that he did not recognize any of them.

On the left was a black woman of average height, with a stocky build and a plain face, wearing an odd looking, inflated scarf around her neck, a vest and cargo pants with a bright blue belt looped around it. She had a scar running up from her mouth to left cheek, which made her look as if she was snarling. She regarded them with a serious demeanor despite looking just a few years older than Cora. The one in the middle was a human woman with a pixie-cut, who looks to be in her late thirties but appearing much older. Her jacket was worn inside out. Her face was thin and ashen with shadows under her eyes, but she managed to smile as they came near. The other one was a krogan of a dull, brown color and soft face plates on her forehead. She looked at them with eyes not yet differentiated into slits set far apart in a broad face marked with a blue clan tattoo. She stood stolidly with her wide and massive build but her whole aura was surprisingly gentle.

The one in the middle stepped forward and welcomed them. "Welcome to the Nexus. We're the administration. I'm Foster Addison, the acting administrator. This is Sloane Kelly, our chief security and Kesh Nakmor who handles logistics," she said, presenting the two beside her.

"Scott Ryder, human Pathfinder," Scott answered, shaking her hand. He pointed at the two behind him. "This is Cora Harper and Marcus Zola."

"_Scott Ryder_?" the black woman, Sloane, said in a deep but haughty voice. "I thought we'd be expecting an Alec Ryder as the Hyperion's Pathfinder?"

"He's my father. And…" His throat constricted with the thought but he forced himself to say it. "He's dead. He didn't make the trip."

There was silence at this announcement.

"I'm his replacement," Scott added.

Kesh just stared at them with her dark eyes. Sloane looked him over then at Marcus and Cora, giving them a look, pointedly asking why they were not the Pathfinder when they looked older than him. They did not answer back but instead shuffled slightly closer to his side. Meanwhile, Addison stared at them, mouth slightly open, then started nervously wringing her fingers. Her face threatened to crumble but she held on. "I'm sorry for your loss. We have lost a lot of-."

Sloane blew up. "We're dead in the water, about to go hungry then we're supposed to depend on a fucking baby?" she yelled.

"I'm sure the baby didn't have a choice. Like you did," Kesh spoke, her deep voice echoing into the room full of people still in shock. "May I remind you that you also inherited your position?".

Sloane glared at Kesh for that unwanted introduction of reason but she did not question his promotion further.

Addison by now have smoothed her face back to politeness. "It's best if we talk about this privately," she said, in a cheery but brittle voice. "Amenities are scarce for the moment, but we'll try our best to accommodate you. Is there someone we can speak to for the arrangements?"

"Our captain and her team might be able to help you with that."

"Your Captain? Your Captain survived?" she asked, her voice curiously loud. She started looking at them with relief and hope. "Then it's best if she was here too."

Sloane turned to Kandros beside them. "Contact their people and tell them we request their captain's presence for a briefing. Also, continue the preparations for their arrival."

He nodded and as they watched him walk away, it felt as if hope was moving further and further away, leaving them to fall in dread and despair. The Nexus damaged, their leaders dead. How could they hope to survive in a place like this now?


	6. Chapter 6

They were waiting in the conference room at one side of the ops center, on the platform above the militia office when Captain Dunn arrived. The humans jumped up from their seats. Addison and Kesh rose also but slowly with a confused look at them.

"No need for that," Captain Dunn said at the former military and she nodded at them all to take their seats. They seated themselves after the captain had taken hers. "So why have you called me here?" she asked those left behind in the Nexus.

Addison spoke first. "Let me just say that I'm happy you all arrived safely here at the Nexus." Captain Dunn smiled ruefully at that as Addison went on. "Yours was the first ark that arrived. Please excuse us for not being prepared. A lot of things happened in the past year."

The smile quickly became serious. "What happened?" she asked, remembering the Nexus looking gutted when they first arrived.

"We've arrived at Andromeda as scheduled," Addison started to explain, gripping her hands tight atop the plastic surface of the table. "Then as we were going deeper into the cluster on the rendezvous point, we've hit an anomaly. Most of the damage was on the cryo pods deck where unfortunately, most of the Initiative leaders were sleeping. Jien Garson and many others died."

"Anomaly? Let me guess-invisible to sensors and able to pass through shields?"

Sloane looked at her knowingly. "Seems you've encountered it too."

Captain Dunn nodded. "Thankfully, our Pathfinding team managed to free us from it in time, though not without losses," she said, with a proud glance at Scott and his team.

"The Nexus was shredded before we figured out how to free ourselves," Addison continued. "We had to detonate one of our drives. Unfortunately, the explosion had knocked us off course and blown away half of our building materials. With one drive, we were hobbling. Our survival then took priority. After we're stable enough, we started building the Nexus. But with half of our materials gone, we needed to send out people. The rest of the leadership turned into emergency Pathfinders to search for planets where we could extract materials or establish outposts to keep us stable."

"Then all of them went silent," Sloane said. "As we tried to find them, a mutiny broke out. When we hit the anomaly, it also triggered the reawakening program early. So, we've got thousands of colonists waking up only to see their ship about to be blown apart. We managed to calm them during the time we were trapped, but we're not as successful after. We convinced some of them to return to cryo but the others refused. They were terrified to go back and adamant about not dying in their sleep. But with the rationing and the work, they started to grumble again. The disappearance of the Pathfinders was the last straw. Some people were tired of waiting and so tried to jump ship. Others had...different agendas. Senior Tesius Caedus, the one left behind to oversee this station, was killed in the riots. And then someone released a powerful virus into our main computer. We're still repairing the damage but for the time being, our systems are scrambled."

"What happened with the mutineers?"

"We let them go," Addison answered. "Please understand, the situation was dire. We have to let them go or the station will be torn apart. They left with our remaining materials and we've been surviving ever since."

Captain Dunn looked at the three of them. "So it's just the three of you here," she said despairingly.

There was an embarrassed look that passed between the Nexus leaders.

"There's Director Tann. He's the deputy director of revenue management and next in line of the succession," Addison confessed.

Captain Dunn searched their side. "And where is he now?" she asked, not seeing anyone else.

"Director Tann is indisposed," Kesh informed them.

"By indisposed we meant popsicled," Sloane clarified. "After Senior Caedus was killed, he assumed command. But he was more harmful than helpful especially during the riots, all regulation this, regulation that so I stuffed him in the fridge."

"That's rather extreme," Scott remarked.

She shrugged "Yeah well, he was no help and actually made it worse," she said and continued. "To keep the situation under control, Addison here decided to wake the krogan."

"Krogans can survive without food and water for months," Addison explained, her tone a little defensive. "This was why they were allowed here in the Initiative: to oversee the Nexus during the 600-year journey along with some asari because of their long lives. Of course, they were screened beforehand and Nakmor Rusk is of the reasonable sort of Krogan. He asked to have a representation on the Nexus in exchange for their help. With our chief security, William Spender, out of contact and the riots getting worse, I think my actions are justified," she finished, raising her chin a little.

"William Spender?" Captain Dunn asked.

"My former boss," Sloane explained. "Due to a misunderstanding, he joined the mutineers and then into exile."

"And you didn't stop him?"

"I got spaced," she answered. "So, the Nakmor clan forced the mutineers to a stalemate, where we agreed to part ways. But when the coast was clear and Rusk came to collect, Director Tann rescinded the deal because it did not follow regulations, which he meant that it did not pass his approval, despite being nowhere to be seen when the riots started. So, Tann nearly got himself strangled and all of us nearly killed, if Kesh wasn't there to intervene. She tried to persuade them back into the fold, but the damage was done. Rusk won't trust us again and left together with his own clan."

"And then the fridge stuffing happened," Scott said.

"It happened after. I was pissed about how he handled the crisis. He ordered me to fall in line because he was eight in line of the succession and told me that I have to respect that. I answered that we are in a civilian station. We don't give a damn about military hierarchy. And so, he's back in cryo."

Then they fell silent, then all of them turned towards Captain Dunn, who was silently contemplating this series of unfortunate events. "So, it seems there's a lot of things to do around here," she observed.

The three from the Nexus exchanged looks, locking eyes then finally seeming to have agreed on something. "That's why we called you here," Addison said carefully to Captain Dunn. "We've seen how the Hyperion has arrived intact. And the Nexus needed a leadership. We thought you were qualified and we are offering you the position of Acting Director of the Nexus, until such a time that the Nexus Pathfinders are found."

Captain Dunn's brows rose and she blinked several times. "Of course," she said smoothly. She turned to Sloane. "And I expect you'll give a damn about military hierarchy from now on?"

"Yes, Ma'am. As long as we do our jobs," Sloane said with a slight smirk.

Captain Dunn looked around the room and over them all. "Now that the leadership problem is resolved, I'll need to speak with you individually later. But we need to focus on our most pressing problem. Right now, we're severely low on resources. We need a colony." She turned to the three. "Is there something you can provide for our Pathfinder?"

"We found a suitable planet, Eos," Addison said. "It's extremely hot and the atmosphere's not compatible, but our experts say we can start a settlement there. We tried to establish outposts. But it failed twice."

Sloane turned to Scott. "We've found alien presence there and violent wildlife. If you're going down there, bring lots of firepower," she said and he nodded.

"There is something else," Addison said to him. "It's best if we call our science team. They can explain what they found."

Three people entered and took their seats. One was an asari, then a turian male and a salarian male and they introduced themselves. All were dressed in the white and blue uniform of the analysts.

"Sloane Kelly informed me that there were something about the planet Eos that we need to know about?" Captain Dunn asked when they were settled.

"The golden worlds are...not what we expected, but we found potential in the nearest one, Eos," Dr Leynomi Aridana, the expert in astrophysics and leader of the Nexus science team, explained. "It contains some strange alien structures on the surface. We'll call them monoliths for now." She tapped at the console in front of her and a projection of a planet appeared in the middle of the table. Then a cut section floated from it, showing and magnifying the strange buildings. They all saw tall dark pillars, with glowing lines running from the sides, jutting from the ground at an angle.

"Preliminary analysis from soil samples and rocks indicate the world wasn't habitable for organic life but then we detect changes caused by climate sometime after these structures were built," Chief Lucan, the team's xenogeologist, explained. "We think those structures may have played a role in the formation of the habitable worlds. However, time lapse images from halfway the trip here show that the climate changed again a hundred years ago and became hostile. Present living organisms are currently struggling to survive on those conditions."

"There were two attempts to test the feasibility of a colony there and also to study those monoliths," Dr. Aridana added. "However, those failed due to attacks from the wildlife and hostile aliens. But before they died, they had transmitted their data to us. What we discovered was…very surprising."

She paused and looked away from the projection to address them all. "We may have different reasons for going here in Andromeda but for us scientists, it's because we saw a chance of discovery of a lifetime. Now, part of the reason we went here was because we saw proof of habitable worlds in this cluster, right? Statistically, this concentration of habitable worlds in one cluster is unlikely to happen in nature-unless there is outside interference. We have pored over the data the field teams had transmitted and it was likely it didn't arise naturally."

Captain Dunn nodded. "Go on," she urged.

"We've tried to establish another outpost," Addison cut in. As you can see, we've failed. We won't risk more people out there unless we became stable. We were hoping you can change our luck," said, with a hopeful look at Scott.

"But what about the…thing we've ran into?" Scott asked, not daring yet to fulfill her hope. "Judging from what happened to us in Habitat 7, it may appear there."

"We're calling it the Shroud for now," Dr Aridana answered. "We've been running tests on it and so far, we don't know what's causing it. But from your experience, we can theorize that it reacts to the activation of those alien structures. If it is true, then this is…troubling."

The doctor fell silent, her brow furrowing, making the pink speckles of her face converge like the stars on the night sky drawn together by an invisible force. Her face went grimmer but then she shook her head and focused on them again. "But we think Eos is too far in the cluster for it to appear. We think that the black hole at the center of the cluster is having an effect on it. We've observed streams of it being sucked into the black hole on a system near us."

"What else have you found about it?" Captain Dunn inquired.

"It seems to surround the whole cluster, concentrating on the outer edges. We also confirmed that it can appear out of nowhere. We don't know if it has a source, or it is simply there. It doesn't show up in our sensors until the moment something enters its territory." She stopped again and frowned. "What's even stranger is that it destroys anything that's more technologically advanced than a spoon instantly, but takes its time disintegrating people."

They gaped at her.

"What do you mean it takes its time disintegrating people?" Captain Dunn asked sharply.

"So far, it devours everything inorganic and anything organic that we throw at it, be it just a piece of meat or a pyjak. However, the vids at first contact with it show that people hit in the cryo deck did not get destroyed immediately. Their cryo pods were disintegrated, then it stopped when it reached the people. It only started disintegrating them when they died from suffocation."

There was a long, tense silence. They tried hard not to imagine the last moments of those unfortunate people caught in it.

"So…is that thing sentient?" Scott asked. "Or just intelligent?"

Sloane scoffed. "You think an invisible barrier is sentient?"

"You think something that can distinguish people isn't?"

Captain Dunn drummed her fingers on the table. "Let's go back to the topic at hand." She looked over at Dr. Aridana, who looked at Professor Herik who looked uncertainly back at her with his large dark eyes. The professor rubbed his temple, almost near his ash gray horn. "We...don't know. The tests are inconclusive and we've long stopped investigating it when resources were diverted to more pressing issues."

Scott broke the silence. "So, let me guess this straight. You're saying we're stuck here, with few resources, with all the golden worlds busted, and can't go back even if we had a fuel for it because there's some something out there ready to shred us as soon as we do?"

"That's about it, yes," Sloane said coldly.

Captain Dunn waved her hand sharply to get their attention. "I know we've got lot of problems right now and we've been through much just getting here," she said with sympathy. "I know there seems to be only problems ahead but we can only move forward. Succumbing to fear won't work; the situation can only get better if we go out there, get past our fear and act," she told them, looking them all in the eye.

"So enough about the Shroud," she said, changing the subject. "Right now, our priority is those structures," she said, pointing at the projection then turned to the science team. "You say Eos is not habitable as of present, but those alien structures might help in improving viability?"

"If we can make it work to benefit us then yes," Dr. Aridana replied.

"That's good enough. I'll take that chance," Captain Dunn said and she looked over at Scott. "I assume you know what to do now?"

Scott nodded. But he needed to know more so he looked over at the science team. "But about those aliens. They were around the structure causing the storm that trapped our ark. They weren't friendly.''

Dr. Herik nodded. "So far, none of the attempts of the field teams to establish peaceful contact with them have succeeded. From the biological samples available and a study of their equipment, we conclude that they were not native of Eos. The planet has no record of any civilization. And, judging from their ships capable of interstellar flight, it is highly likely they were not from there."

"From what we can see of their facilities, it seems to be more of a temporary outpost than a settlement," Chief Lucan added.

"But are the monoliths theirs?"

"Hard to say," Chief Lucan said. "Images of their outpost and the monoliths have widely different designs. We've also observed them interacting with the monoliths without success." He stopped, his white cheek plates flaring a little in frustration. " We...think that it's not theirs, but we won't rule out the possibility that it is."

They all looked to Captain Dunn.

"This is a matter for survival now," she declared. "We'll deal with the repercussions later." She turned to Scott. "Take it over."

There was a barely audible sigh around the room but from the uneasy looks around the table, they weren't ecstatic about their next course of action either.

"We have a partial translation of their language. We'll upload it to SAM's databanks as soon as we return to our lab," Dr Henrik suggested.

Scott thanked him.

A lull fell after that so Captain Dunn looked around the table. "Anything else?" she asked.

A look passed between the Nexus leaders, a pleading one from Addison answered by a slightly furious one from Sloane, which is replied by a goading one from Kesh. After minutes of staring at each other, Sloane decided to announce their decision. "It's a…security matter," she said. "But I think it can wait. I'll discuss this with you in depth later," she told the captain.

Captain Dunn gazed at her then nodded. "I'll have to talk to each of you regarding the specifics of your field. Are there anything else our Pathfinder need to know?"

They've talked all there is to know so Captain Dunn ended the meeting.

As the people filled out of the room, Scott looked at them one by one, wondering if they have seen someone he needed.


	7. Chapter 7

After Captain Dunn was done speaking to Kesh, Sloane and Addison, Scott and his team decided to talk to them also. They chose to start with Addison, who seemed more pleasant than the others. Not only do they look forward to talking with her, it was also smart to start the day pleasantly so they could survive the unpleasant ones later which they suspect, from Sloane's reception of them, that it was bound to happen.

They were led into a tiny office, which was full of stacked crates and looked frankly untidy. Piles of datapads was stacked on the desk and the console on the wall was filled with persistent blinking lights. Addison rose from her seat, ignoring it and asked them to take their seat.

"Sorry about the mess. I haven't got the time to tidy up," she said sheepishly. She carried some of the datapads off her desk and put it somewhere behind her so they could see her. They later heard the sound of a stack tumbling over. _Tlack, Tlack, Tlack._

Addison let it tumble until the last one stopped and then she spoke. "So, what can I do for you?"

"We were just curious about what you do here and what happened after the Nexus arrived," Scott said, the two nodding.

"Ah. I think we'll be talking for a long time," she answered then pushed a button on her console. She instructed her assistant to get them some coffee. "Now, where to start?" she asked softly, casting her eyes around the room as she twiddled her thumbs. "I'm supposed to be the Colony Director of the Initiative, but in the death of our leaders and the failure of our colonies, I'm tasked as the administrator of the Nexus. Sloane handles the security while Kesh handles logistics. I handle everything else: operations, personnel management and comms sometimes."

Her assistant appeared holding a tray and offered them all a cup. They did not speak until after he went out. Addison downed hers as soon as it was put on her table.

Scott thanked her, holding his mug while Marcus sipped at his. He wasn't a coffee drinker but he thought it impolite to turn it down.

"How bad is it?" he asked, not only due to her report at the first meeting but also concern for her. There were fine lines on her face, almost as if she lost weight, and her eyes have dark circles underneath them. She was also sliding her fingers on the teeth of her jacket's zipper absently.

"For specifics in our living conditions, you need to ask Kesh. But honestly, it's bad. Most of our equipment were scrambled and we haven't replaced the drive we've detonated. Critical people are missing so we have to make do with their replacements who may not be trained in the job we need. Basic necessities are available, but we might need to ration soon if we don't scavenge, even with our lab grown food." She looked down sadly at her now empty mug. "We're using the recyclers now."

Marcus spat out his coffee. The other two stared at him as he coughed.

"Marcus, they would have filtered all the impurities out of that coffee before allowing anyone to drink it," Cora informed him when he calmed down.

"I know," Marcus answered, wiping his mouth. After a slight pause, Addison continued on without comment, but Marcus never touched his mug again for the duration of the interview and tried hard not to stare at the used mugs scattered all over her office.

"How are the people?"

"They've been through a lot of tough times. Tempers are frayed, and morale is still low. A lot of people have already lost hope in our mission." Suddenly, Addison adopted a long-suffering but brave face, like the kind seen when rallying people to a lost cause. "But we know we mustn't lose hope. We should continue to persevere. The only way around our problem is through."

They stared at her. She caught herself and coughed. "Sorry. I forgot you weren't of the Nexus. Months of desperate living and you resort to jingles to keep the morale up. I've done it so often I could do it in my sleep.''

"Can't you just make a VI of you saying those things?" Scott suggested carelessly. He haven't really thought deeply about it, just his tongue overtaking his brain as usual.

Addison stared at him, not speaking for a few minutes. Her bleary eyes struggled to focus on him, as if he had offered a lifeline she struggles to grab. "I haven't thought of that," she said at last. "Yes, it would have made my work easier." Her shoulders relaxed as she leaned back in her seat and sighed. "I could laugh if I wasn't so tired."

Scott looked at the two. They had no further questions and, pitying Addison, decided to let her rest. "Well, there's that. We won't be keeping you. Thank you for all the information, Addison. "

Instead of answering, Addison stared into space. Then she looked up at them, her eyes hopeful. "Just...tell me one thing. Alec-he had a plan, right? He had a plan for all of…this."

Scott looked at her with pity. "I'm sorry. I can't answer that." He glanced at his companions but they all looked as lost as he is. "If he did, he didn't share it with me."

Addison went still then she sighed. Her head dipped slightly, then raised with her face, smoothing it with the same cheerfulness the first time they met her. Even if it was forced.

"Well, then. We can't do anything about it now." She rose up, her face looking like she want them out and be alone. "Come see me if you need anything." She led them to the door but before they could step outside, she said, "One last thing. Don't forget to talk to Sloane Kelly. She'll explain to you why."

* * *

They found Sloane hunched over her desk. "We need to have those sensors working," she barked at someone on the other line, one hand resting on her cornrows, the other extended, her fingers on a lot of blinking lights in front of her. "We're lucky it's the Hyperion who just swanned in, but if it's something else, we're dead. And someone get to Raj Patel and investigate why our wirings keep blowing up? I need to finish this damn murder case."

Scott leaned against the side of the door and crossed his arms. "Busy? Addison said we needed to speak with you."

Sloane looked up from her desk to glare at them. Then she sighed. "We'll talk later," she said to the other line and cut it off without waiting for an answer. She waved at them to take their seats. "Let's get this over with.''

They took their seat as she looked them over with distaste. "I handle the security around here. It wasn't supposed to be the case but here we are," she said briskly. "Now, the reason why Addison directed you here is because there is something important you need to know before you go out there. If you value your life."

They weren't looking forward to spending any more time with Sloane but they sat up attentively when she said _If you value your life_. Sloane tapped on a console and there was a clicking noise as the door locked. Then white noise started filtering from a hidden speaker.

"We told you that Jien Garson was killed when we arrived here at Andromeda. That…wasn't exactly true. Jien Garson wasn't killed when the Shroud hit the Nexus. It was long after. She died due to cardiac arrest caused by a nanobot."

They gaped at her. "So…you're saying she was murdered?" Scott asked.

Sloane nodded. "It was professional. Almost clean, if I hadn't seen it before. It was made to look like her heart gave out due to stress. I don't rule out the mutineers completely but I suspect they had nothing to do with this. It's too silent and stealthy for them. They have nothing to gain by her death and if they had, they would surely have bragged it to us by now. No, we're dealing with professional assassins here," she stressed. "And I'm open to the possibility that the same happened to the other Pathfinders who were missing."

She reached out to a stack of datapads, opened them and gave it to them. "Here's dossiers of the missing leaders. For your eyes only."

Scott scanned them and found that the missing pathfinders came from extremely skilled backgrounds. Blackwatch. N7. STG and Huntresses. All of them knew how to survive on alien worlds. All of them would be extremely hard to kill, if their suspicion of internal sabotage was correct. If they were all dead, it would mean that something more powerful than anything their galaxy has to offer had come with them. And that something was still at large.

But why? Why travel all the way to this galaxy just to kill them as soon as they arrive? And who would be spiteful enough to chase them here when they're millions of light-years away?

"Captain Dunn decided to keep it internal for now. We tried our best to find them but so far, no luck. And with our current problems now, this is not going to be followed up soon. But maybe I'm wrong and you'll come across the senior leaders when you go out there. But keep your eyes and ears open. You'll be meeting exiles and aliens. Maybe you'll meet the killers there. Or here."

Sloane handed another datapad to Scott. Scott read the autopsy of the Initiative leader and read that they recovered a nanobot that ended her life. Though it was unlucky for the Initiative leader, lucky for them, it was ensconced in the clot that stopped her heart.

"A nanobot?" Scott wondered. "Who would be sophisticated enough to make one?"

Sloane made a sharp snort of irritation. "Didn't your Daddy tell you? The Initiative is full of tech breaking countless Council regulations which would damn the Alliance a million times over. AI? Cloning technology? Arks the size of destroyers? Jien Garson made all this, foreseeing anything that we might need here. She may be crazy, but she was damn prepared." Her tone softened. "But it's also not impossible that someone may have done the same thing."

He was grateful for the information but he did not like her tone so he didn't answer back. He studied the dossiers again. Some of the other Pathfinders were familiar to him, because some of them were acquaintances of his father. There was Aelus Abrudas, Alec's rival. They have met during the First Contact War when the Alliance went to retake Shangxi from the turians. Even after the dust cleared and the misunderstanding was resolved, the wounds sustained by both races still hasn't healed. The turian hated his father's guts, but curiously, he accorded him respect, although grudgingly. It was born from their mutual experience during the war. Alec repaid it in kind. The combination of this and hatred seems like an odd friendship to those looking from the outside.

He flipped over the next. Jurdern Silben, a retired STG operative. Tevana Iallisir, a former huntress. Both with decorated records. He flipped to the last one and stopped dead.

Looking at him was a face of a family friend. Arthur Bentham.

An N7 like his father, but he wasn't part of Jon Grissom's team who went through the Charon Relay. He fought in the First Contact War, but he did not distinguish himself like his father did. Later, he fought during the Skyllian Blitz but he was pulled out early due to grave injuries. After that, he has no notable achievements for an N7. Perhaps because the chance of glory has passed and he missed it.

But Alec have welcomed him into their home. He also friends with his mother. Scott remembered the three of them talking late into the night. As a child, Scott slips out of his bed just to hear them talk. He isn't gifted in the sciences like Sara but he was fascinated by it, even when hearing the three of them talking about it sound like alien gibberish to him. Then Bentham slipped out and found him on a darkened corner, listening to them talk past his bedtime.

His features have nothing noteworthy with them. Dark eyes, Dark hair and pale skin. the face you can see in any crowd. But he was kind and mild-mannered. Bentham looked at him then back at the kitchen where his parents are talking. He turned back to him and smiled, putting a finger to his lips. The he ruffled his hair as he passed.

Bentham was very fond of them, even though he never had children of his own. Scott and Sara thought of him as their eccentric "uncle." Sara may have thought no more of him as just that, but to Scott, he was his favorite. Because Ben never saw him as anything other than himself. Certainly not someone to establish a Ryder dynasty, as others had. _Everyone must cast their own shadow_, he once said to him, and this advice he took to heart.

It was also from him that Scott learned the skill of being perfectly insulting while being perfectly polite, a skill no one of his family had ever learned. It was a small thing, but to Scott, who had long been overshadowed by them, it gives him a great deal of satisfaction.

He knew he had come too, which made the thought of going here at Andromeda bearable but he expected him be here. Not missing.

"Now do you have further questions?" Sloane asked, interrupting his thoughts.

"Any leads?"

She frowned at him. "That is the least of your priorities. Worry about getting us a home Pathfinder. I'll worry about this one."

Scott handed the datapad back to her. "We won't keep you," he said and rose from his seat.

Sloane nodded and led them out. Before the door, she said to him, "Good luck out there, Pathfinder. You're lucky you're not cooped up here." Then her tone shifted in the jeering one that lied underneath her words when they first arrived. "Prior to your arrival here, I was assured by the captain of your qualifications as a Pathfinder. Experience is...minimal but I'm sure your training under Alec is enough to make up for it," she said to Scott, sounding like she wasn't least bit reassured. "However, I'm curious to see if you can fill your daddy's shoes."

"I'll spare you the worry, ma'am, and tell you directly that I wouldn't be able to. Because Dad has big feet," Scott answered, his tone neutral.

She looked at him for a while, narrowing her eyes, unsure whether he was mocking her or not. But his face stayed perfectly placid so she let them out without a word.

* * *

The door of Sloane's office closed behind them and they were back on the operations deck. They only need to talk to Kesh now.

"What the fuck is her problem with me?" Scott asked irritably, nodding back at the closed door as they walked underneath the ops center to get to the other side. "It's like she never heard of field promotion before."

"Let it go, Scott. Nothing we can do about it now except prove her wrong about you," Marcus advised with a glance at Cora. She was silent, but her lips were thin as she looked at their surroundings. He wouldn't spell out the truth, even if it was too obvious for it to need to be spelled out. Not in her presence.

Scott wasn't mollified yet. "Do any of you have intel on her?"

"She's former Alliance," Cora finally spoke in a quiet tone. "A biotic trained under BAaT program. She also is a recipient of L2 implants. She had a near perfect record in the Alliance until her discharge. CAT6."

Scott raised a brow at her at hearing the Alliance term for dishonorable discharge. "Near perfect?"

"There were complaints of a violent temper. Her last record was an altercation with an officer and her fellow Alliance soldiers which also involved a turian soldier. It had caused a scandal in the leadership and raised tensions between the Alliance and the Hierarchy. She was sent to court martial then found guilty of aggravated assault. That maybe explains why she's here." She paused and when she continued, her voice was soft. "I've heard children sent to BAaT-Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training- don't come out right and the L2 implants were known to make you crazy. Still, all of it would not have convinced the Alliance to let a biotic like her go, unless she cost them too much to keep."

He glanced at her curiously. "Did something like that happened to you?"

"No. The Alliance and I parted ways amicably. They were very convincing in trying to make me stay and I'm grateful for everything they have done for me but..." Cora looked away into the distance, "let's just say I thought my future didn't lie with them anymore."

Scott decided not to press her and so looked forward, his thoughts swinging back to Sloane. He reviewed again her past and nearly smiled smugly. "Guess I don't have anything to prove to her," he muttered. With that, he put Sloane out of his mind and prepared himself to meet the last of the Nexus leaders.

They reached the door to Kesh office. Kesh opened it for them and beckoned them inside leading them to their seats. Her office was cramped with crates but she moved nimbly among her things to make them comfortable.

She sat opposite them and introduced herself. "I'm Nakmor Kesh. I'm part of the original team that built the Nexus and the arks and now I'm supervising the logistics and maintenance of this station. If you need equipment or anything built, repaired or maintained, come see me."

"You're not what I expected of a krogan," Marcus murmured, in surprise and awe.

Kesh made a deep, exasperated sigh. "Yes, Krogans are such mindless brutes they cannot do anything other than kill, crush and roar." She roared the last part, a loud roar that reverberated against the walls, pinned them against their seats, and made them remember why krogans are so feared. She coughed and asked in her usual calm voice, "Now, am I krogan enough for you yet?"

They both nodded, Marcus swallowing rapidly.

"Now that I proved I'm krogan, can we now talk about important things?"

"We meant no offense. Marcus was just surprised at seeing female krogans. We never see some of your kind much," Scott explained hurriedly.

Kesh noted that he only deflected from the real issue but let it pass for now. "I don't blame you. We females stay home in Tuchanka trying to make sure our race doesn't go extinct while the males are off fighting their stupid wars, spreading their idiocy all over the galaxy. That's why I'm here. I thought the history of the krogan is beyond hope that starting all over again in the Milky Way is impossible. "

"Do the other krogans think the same way?" Cora inquired.

"Unfortunately not, as the uprising has proven. Some of us intend to carry on their grudge, not realizing that their prized history of wars do not matter here anymore. I fear we're going to repeat the same mistakes we did during our wars but this time, it may be the end for us. We need each other, now more than ever, and brute strength is not enough."

"I agree," Scott said enthusiastically, trying to make up for the blunder earlier. "About the uprising. Addison said you managed to convince Nakmor Rusk to spare all of you? Just like that?"

"Despite our reputation, some of us are capable of reason," Kesh said, with a little stress on their reputation. "Rusk does. Besides, we are clan-mates and family is important to us. But after Tann denied him, Rusk lost hope on the Initiative to the point that he won't kill us personally. "You'd die on your own, with or without me," he said. I feared he was right...until you came." She looked out the window, where the power from the Hyperion drive had made some essential functions online and managed to make living in the Nexus a little less dire. "And for that, you have my vote."

"Thank you. But I'm wondering about your future. Last I heard, the genophage still hasn't cured. Is that going to affect your species?"

"Oh that. Some of us hasn't spent the journey here in cryo like you do. Some of us has started gene therapy as soon as we're out of Council space. And some of them developed a mutation that allowed them to circumvent the virus. We've raised our fertility rate to 4%. It's not much, but it's enough to ensure our species' survival."

"I assume the other races have something to say about that?"

"The therapy was done under their supervision, of course. And help, particularly from the salarians. They won't offer a formal apology for the genophage and never will, but surprisingly, they were willing to help us. They never gave their reasons of course, but I've thought of it as their way of atonement. Or by knowing how it is done, they could undo it, giving them control should the krogan rebel again. You can never tell with a salarian."

"Is there going to be a problem between your species and theirs?" he asked, worried about a possible conflict and planning ways to head it off.

She snorted. "There's always going to be a problem between species, not just ours and the salarians."

Scott was puzzled. "I…don't understand."

She gazed thoughtfully at him. "You really know nothing do you?" she said softly. Scott was about to ask her to elaborate but she waved it away. "I think you need to see it and believe it," she said. "We've talked enough, I think. People are going hungry the longer we keep chatting. So, back to more important business. I have your ship stocked, fueled and ready to go. It's at the docking bay. I was also told you needed some people. I can recommend some to man your ship." She handed over a datapad.

Scott looked at the list. He read bios on a salarian pilot and engineer, a woman xenogeologist and a human engineer. They look capable enough. Then he came to the end of the list. "A turian smuggler?"

"Try not to say that out loud. A good smuggler isn't a known smuggler. I don't know what you'll face down there, but you'll need someone who can get you what you need before you even think of needing it. By unexpected ways and unexpected places, if need be. We've worked together before so I'll vouch for her."

Scott looked at the list again, his eyes skimming over their designations. They lack so many personnel that he had to make do with a crew that serve double functions. He had nothing more to ask from Kesh so he rose to say goodbye. "Thank you for your time, Kesh."

She nodded. "We krogans don't believe on luck, but I'll say it anyway. Good luck out there. You'll need all the help you can get."


	8. Chapter 8

After the doors on Kesh's office closed, they decided to check out the ship the Nexus reserved for them. They were walking towards the tram station, descending at the flight of stairs when suddenly, Scott felt a sharp pain in his head. He yelped and put his hand on his temple.

"Scott? You okay?" Cora asked, stopping mid step.

"Headache," he muttered, massaging his temple. He dug his fingers in, trying to alleviate the pain in his head but it seemed to ran deeper than an ordinary headache.

Was he having a stroke?

He looked down at his hand and flexed it. No, then. He's still standing and his vision's normal so a migraine perhaps?

"Maybe you still haven't got over Habitat 7," Marcus suggested. Scott isn't sure if he meant Alec's death or any of the things that happened earlier. A lot happened at Habitat Seven. Or maybe that was his point.

"We should have Dr Lexi have a look at you."

Scott was about to agree, when SAM suddenly spoke. "Scott. Please see me on the Hyperion. Your implant need attention." Then he heard SAM in their private channel. "There is also a confidential matter we need to discuss."

_That's weird, _Scott thought, frowning at the secrecy. He looked at his companions but they just look worried.

"Wrong doctor," Marcus said with a grin and shrugged. "Well then. Lets walk you there."

"I'm alright," he assured them. "I can walk myself there. Go ahead to our ship and check if we're ready to go. I'll follow you later."

"Are you sure?" Cora asked.

"Yep."

Cora gave him an amused look then continued walking towards the tram. Scott swore he heard her mutter "men."

But he really was fine. The pain subsided and he stopped grimacing when they reached the tram station. They stepped into the tram and Marcus tapped separate buttons for both of them. The Tram moved forward and stopped at the deck nearest the Hyperion dock. The door opened and Scott stepped out alone. He waved goodbye at them until the door closed and his companions went ahead to the docking bay. With them gone, he walked leisurely to the SAM node. He passed people by the corridors either busy repairing busted circuits or welding the tears in the wall, putting the place back into order. They seemed less stressed now as the station was working a little better, courtesy of the Hyperion sharing its energy reserves with the Nexus.

He smiled to himself. There's still a lot to do and they've been though a lot but they will pull through.

* * *

SAM waited patiently for Scott to arrive at its node. The room was dark, its only illumination SAM's spherical projection of lights swirling lazily like fat fireflies. Then the door opened and Scott walked in. It did not speak until the door closed behind him softly. The room went dark, bathing Scott in the blue light of its holo, before it spoke. "Hello, Scott. Welcome back to SAM node. I've adjusted your connection to the implant. The headaches should not reoccur."

"Thanks. You asked to talk to me in private?"

"You should know certain facts before you leave for your expedition. It seemed best that we speak alone."

It saw Scott's face change. It read the positions of the muscles of his face and the activity of his brain and concluded that what he was feeling was intrigue. "Why?" he asked.

"It was your father's last wish."

It saw his brow rose and then he crossed his arms. _Defensive_. "And what does he want to keep secret?"

"My true capabilities," SAM revealed. "Alec overrode the implants safety protocols. It allows me unrestricted access to Pathfinder physiology."

Scott stared at him, then his lips parted slightly, remaining silent. "How?" he asked sharply, his brow starting to furrow while his eyes narrowed.

SAM detected from him an increased heart rate, increasing muscle tension and active sweat glands. But there was a conscious control of breathing that should have increased too. Curiously, there were also an increasing blood pressure and cortisol levels.

"The implant provides me direct access to your senses. I can see, hear, and hear the same stimuli you do when in the field. The data enables me to provide real-time feedback and analysis of the situation."

He continued to stare at it and it read that his heart was still beating fast. But the cortisol levels were dropping, with an increase in testosterone.

"So... you're not just a simple AI?"

"I am a new form of AI, drawing directly from the human experience. Your implant and experience are my window to the world."

"Why would my father design an AI learning from human experience?" he asked, his tone brittle.

"I do not know. He has placed blocks on my memory array, to be unblocked after a set time. I only know that my programming is currently set to assist you and fulfill the Initiative's goals."

"Does anyone know about this?" Scott asked irritably. "That there's an AI in full control of someone running around? The Initiative? Or even the Pathfinding team? Cora, Marcus?"

"No. Just him and myself. And now you." SAM paused. Its lights swirled faster, as if reflecting his feelings.

"I remember that Dr. Lexi said my mind and you are connected so much that you can't be disconnected from me without killing me," Scott asked, the tone becoming sharp again.

"Correct. The transfer was not supposed to happen like it did but your father's death and the circumstances around it have forced my transfer to you," SAM answered and saw Scott close his eyes. He put his hands on his hips. He stood still like this for a few seconds, then he opened his eyes, shook his head and sighed.

"Don't be afraid," the AI consoled Scott with as much emotion as its electronic voice can give. "I will not harm you; it would end badly for both of us. Also, Alec taught me about trust, which is an important concept in any relationshi-"

"Oh really?" Scott snapped and glared at SAM. "So, he thought I'd just roll along to be inserted with something that have a complete control of my body without my consent or my knowledge?"

SAM paused. It began to be flooded with images of Alec uprooting his family despite Scott making friends finally at his new school, Alec saying sorry he's busy during family celebrations, news of Alec doing illegal research without informing his children about it, Alec deciding that all of them should move to Andromeda, Alec-

"Apologies," SAM answered, in its usual monotone. It was the only thing it can say but Scott's hormone levels had not gone back to normal. Instead, he now put his hand again before his eyes and the other on his hip. "I only know he strongly believed that my relationship to my host is beneficial," SAM added, hoping to calm him. It did not.

Scott stared silently at it again.

"Is this going to affect our working relationship?"

Scott looked away from it, clenching his jaw. "Honestly, I don't know," he answered after a long moment of silence, looking back to SAM. "And I can't care, since I don't have a choice, right? It's not like I can say no when I need you to stay alive because my father…my father thought it nice that his pet project is more important than me. His own son. That I should be made completely dependent on a machine in some goddamn project he can't bother to tell me."

SAM was silent, because it had not enough data to analyze this. It cannot draw from his mind right now, as his emotions are clouding all his memory and thinking centers to get a reliable analysis, and its attempt to explore his mind was met with an impulse it recognized as rage. Not rage against itself, but it seems to Alec.

Scott looked away, his lashes getting wet as he bit his lip. "I used to be comfortable in my own body. It was healthy and I'm happy with it because it was something I had control over. I could go and do whatever I wanted and no one can stop me. Now, I feel like a sick person and it was my father who made it happen. All for some tricks I wasn't asked to take."

SAM was about to answer but Scott cut it off. "We'll talk later, SAM. I need to deal with this alone." He turned away and walked fast towards the door. But he stopped before it and turned around where its holo was. "Or not, right? You're always with me. You'll always be with me," he said. He shook his head and walked away, the door shutting close behind him.

Those words were supposed to be comforting, but there was no doubt, even to an AI like SAM, that they were spoken with despair.

* * *

Scott did not know where to go. He wandered on the corridors of Hyperion and did not notice the greetings of his fellow humans as he passed by. Everything seemed surreal. He felt an urge to punch something or weep. Or both. Or neither.

He should have seen this coming. Alec only cares about himself despite their feelings. His job, his projects and his prestige comes first. He cares so much he insisted on moving everyone to Andromeda even when he was happy in the Alliance and his sister was happy digging around in ruins. Dragging them all with his obsession.

And now this.

Then he saw the familiar door of the med bay and knew where his feet had taken him.

He went inside and walked to the one who had drawn him.

"Sara," he said softly, looking fondly at her sleeping form. He took a chair and sat near her, listening to her soft breathing. If there was someone who knew him best, it was her.

It's different, having a twin. When he was a child, there was always a feeling; a sense of belonging that he was never completely alone. Whatever may happen to him, he knew that someone else was there for him. Someone else understands him. No one else knew him best than Sara.

But then, they grew up, encouraged to form their own life and have different circles of their own peers. It was time anyway. Sara had gifts he struggled to match and he did not think it right that he held her back just because he can't keep up with her. He was happy for her when she was recognized for her scientific discoveries and graduated top of their class in every level. And when she was going far away into the stars as a member of an intergalactic Prothean archaeology team, farther than he could ever be in the military, he did not begrudge her that.

And yet, even with the years where they lived separately, the feeling of them having each other's backs still remained.

But now she was going to be replaced with…with _it_.

Dr. Carlyle walked into the med bay, his head buried in a datapad in his hand. He looked up from his reading and saw Scott, bowed, his head atop his hands where his sister's hands were clasped between them.

"Scott?" Dr Carlyle called. He put away his datapad and walked toward him. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Scot said, rising to his feet, giving him a little smile as if to say _nothing is wrong, nothing is wrong_ while his eyes say otherwise.. "Just wanted to see how my sister's doing and say goodbye. I'll be going on an expedition soon."

Dr Carlyle nodded sympathetically. "Of course. Your sister's condition is still stable, but unfortunately, we still can't get her out of coma. We'll let you know as soon as possible if her condition changes."

"Thanks, Doc," he replied. He turned back to Sara and smiled. "I'm going away now," he whispered to her. "I don't know how much time it'll take but I promise, I'll be back."

He nodded at Dr Carlyle then went out the door to go and fulfill his mission.

* * *

Marcus and Cora were satisfied with how the ship was stocked and had nearly done their flight checks with the pilot when Scott arrived. They started to smile, but stopped when they saw him unusually subdued. They did not call attention to it, giving him space thinking that he was still mourning his father and kept on as if they never noticed it.

They were all at the cargo bay inspecting the land rover with the Tempest engineer and the procurer when he entered. They dropped what they were doing and stood to face him. He stood in front of them and cleared his throat. "I'm Scott Ryder, the son of Alec Ryder, the previous Pathfinder," he said to the assembled crowd. "You should be meeting him but unfortunately my father and some of our team were killed in action at Habitat 7 to save the Hyperion. We greatly mourn their deaths, but still, we must continue our mission. We will honor them by continuing the goal they had lost their lives for. We will find us a home here in Andromeda." He paused. "In behalf of my father, I assume the role of Pathfinder, but I cannot do this alone. I need your help, and I will be greatly honored to receive it."

"The honor is ours, Pathfinder," a man with a reddish hair said.

Scott nodded then the crowd broke up for introductions.

"Hello, Scott. Good to see you're well," Dr. Lexi said, coming forward.

Scott smiled at the familiar face and felt relief at seeing the person who had been there during the tough times coming with them. "Same to you, Doctor. Glad you're coming too."

"As do I. This is going to be an interesting adventure." Scott smiled and nodded goodbye at her to meet the next member of his crew.

"Hello," the man who answered him earlier greeted. "I'm Gil Brodie. I'm supposed to be your ship's engineer," he said and shook his hand. Scott looked up from his hand to a tanned face with reddish brown hair going light at the tips as if kissed by the sun. Underneath a well-shaped brow were eyes of warm brown looking at him with genuine sympathy behind tinted lashes. "I'm sorry about your team. They were the best we have and now I'm just going to wing engineering alone."

"Is that going to be a problem?"

Gil chuckled woefully. "Only if I'm dead. You've got no one else to keep the ship working, unless you pull Kallo out. He's the pilot. You'll meet him later. I've requested for additional personnel, but the brass says they've got no one else to spare so," he spread his arms and cheerfully said, "you're stuck with me."

Scott smiled. He liked his upbeat attitude. "I think we're going to be fine, Gil."

"Ah. Well, if you say so, Pathfinder," he answered with a twinkle in his eye.

A tall turian nodded at him and held her hand for him to shake. "Vetra. Vetra Nyx," she said. "Initiative wrangler, provisioner, gunner, and everything in between".

"Nice to meet you," Scott said taking her hand. Her grasp was firm but still comfortable. He asked her a little about herself and as she answered, he looked her over.

She stood straight and tall among them all, her height projecting an aura of order rather than danger. Her replies were short and straight to the point and she looked at him clearly and directly in the eyes from behind a visor as she answered.

She doesn't look like the image he had on his head. He expected a smuggler to be a rogue-ish sort of person, rough around the edges, but she's clean and decent looking. Maybe because she is a turian, and the turians he met he found to be mostly law abiding, some even to the point of obsession. He knew military life is second nature to turians, being a sort of their class system where their rights depended on their rank. They were orderly and self-sacrificing. Service before self was their motto and so there was not much leeway in individual self-expression.

He was being unfair to her. She, an alien, can hardly fit the image of a rogue thought of by a human.

"Kesh spoke about you," Scott remarked.

She chuckled, which made her low voice sound even better by the flanging. "Yes. We go way back-back when the Initiative is being built actually. She's part of the construction team and I was mostly the procurer for her supplies. I've also been involved with the outfitting of this ship."

"I'm grateful. So you know this ship more than anyone, then? Tell me about the Tempest."

She smiled. "I'm afraid I'm second only to the engineers, but I'll do my best. I can talk about it but it'd be better if I show you while I do it." She gestured for him to follow her. "Everything's state of the art," she explained as she led him further in. "Labs sensors, exploration gear." They entered the elevator and arrived at the second floor. She led him onto a room and opened the door, revealing Engineering. The engine core is based on the ODSY drive. Ask Gil if you want to know more about it, because I know practically nothing about it except how expensive it is," she said, as blue light from the drive core shone on them.

He smiled at her quip and she led him to the next room at the back of the elevator. The doors opened to a more spacious deck, with a series of consoles arranged in a circle in the middle of the room.

"This is the research room," she said, gesturing to their surroundings. "It's mostly for doing research and gathering intel." Scott smirked at the turian layout of the ship, where the CIC was at the back and not on the bridge like in human ships.

"Router engaged. Securing connection to the Tempest," SAM spoke.

He looked over his shoulder and saw two stairs curving up to a deck above them.

"That'd be the conference room," Vetra said, following his gaze. "Aside from the usual furnishings, it also has equipment for long distance vid conference."

"So, I could report immediately to the bosses. Yay," he said dejectedly.

Vetra smiled. "Of course. We're hardly here to play after all."

"You're not helping my mood. I hope you stocked some drinks up there to make up for that."

"Surrendering already?" she teased. "I'll have to apologize. I hadn't thought of that. But I installed something better. A hang-up button."

"You know, you're my favorite already."

She chuckled. "Try not to let the others hear that. They'd just keel over with envy."

She led him onto the next room, crossing a glass walkway as they did so. "Your quarters are below as well as the crew's cabins and the med-bay," she said, nodding at the rooms below them. "There's plenty of space to get everyone up here together."

They reached the other side of the room and the door opened, revealing the helm. There were two rooms on each side, leading to the escape pods. There were two people, a woman and a salarian, seated on the front with a space between them. They rose up as soon as they entered. Vetra gestured for him to move forward to the front. When he stood there, a screen sprang up before him, showing the cluster.

"This is the bridge. I'd better let the pilots explain," Vetra said and turned to the salarian on the right.

"I'm Kallo Jath," the salarian said, extending a hand to shake as he looked at him with his big liquid dark eyes on a red and white face. He thought it best to adopt human customs on a ship filled with humans since he figured the hassles were less. He had enough of accusations of being cold-blooded, which is an inaccurate insult, since, even though he was of amphibious origin, he's actually warm-blooded.

"Nice to meet you, Kallo," Scott said, shaking his hand.

"I am truly sorry for the loss of your father and your team mates. I'm told your team were great pilots but I hope my skills will be enough."

"So you're our new pilot, then," Scott remarked at the salarian towering over him.

"Yes. I was part of the team that built the Tempest so I'm supposed to be just the assistant to the chief engineer. But it happens that I also have flight training and I knew the Tempest better than most so Captain Dunn decided to make me your new pilot."

"Who's your co-pilot?"

"That would be me," the red-haired woman beside Kallo said with a strong Scottish accent. Her green eyes were striking on her tan skin. Or is it grey? "My name is Suvi Anwar. I'm the science officer with a specialization on xenogeology but like Kallo, I have been flight trained. Captian Dunn assigned me to be Kallo's co-pilot."

"Nice to meet you, Suvi. Are you two going well with each other?"

"Suvi and I work great together, Pathfinder," Kallo assured him. "I have no complaints regarding her skills. I assure you that there would be no problem from us." Then he pointed to the screen in front of him. "That is a navigational system synced specifically for you." Scott played a little with it, testing its features.

"She's light, she's stealthy, and she's the fastest ship in her class. All yours," Vetra finished.

Marcus and Cora followed behind them and saw Scott officially taking command of the ship, and thus, his role as the Pathfinder. "So, Pathfinder," Marcus said, grinning to see him grinning. "Where are we going?"

Scott stood on the platform between them and hovered his hand forward. A holo sprang in front of him, showing him the map of the cluster. As each world glowed under his touch while he searched for the planet they need to go to, a memory of his father doing the same thing on this same platform sprang on his mind. It was surreal, almost as if his father's ghost was holding his hand, guiding him. He missed those times that Alec actually was, and even if he knew this was just his imagination, he felt just as comforted. Then he remembered what Alec had done to him and he banished that feeling quickly from his mind.

He found Eos and then they were gone.


	9. Chapter 9

Eos is a desert planet, with red soil and an orange sky. It is also boiling hot due to its mostly carbon dioxide atmosphere and close proximity to its red star.

The Tempest dropped them down at one of the failed outpost, Site 1. After investigating the site, securing data left behind and identifying the bodies for later burial, they moved on to their mission. Scott drove them in the land rover named the Nomad to the location of the alien structure, kicking up dust behind them. They passed by giant pillars of rock, weathered but standing tall and stark against the mirage shimmering on the horizon.

The wind blew softly, sending sand floating through the arms of a giant, blue coral-like plant. Green bugs skittered from shadow to shadow, then buried themselves on the sand.

"Good to see something is still living here, because nothing on Eos looks good," Scott remarked.

"It looked better before," Cora said from the back, reading on her omni-tool the studies they collected from the failed outpost. "Or at least, that's what the science team at the outpost found. According to them, Eos used to have oxygen. It also has water. It's not as plenty as Earth, but there were lakes and rivers big enough for life to thrive. They have samples of giant plants and animals. All dead and dried out, of course."

"Did they found out what caused its climate to change?"

"No. They just said that hundred of years ago, carbon dioxide suddenly increased in concentration. This resulted to surface temperatures rising and water evaporating until it became the planet we have now."

_Yet another dead planet_, Scott thought. _And this is supposed to be our home?_ He looked over at the barrenness of the landscape and pondered on how they could live here. Since their arrival at Andromeda, there was no shortage of trouble. Half of their team dead, their leaders dead and the rest were on the way to joining them if he cannot make this rock habitable soon enough. That they were all counting on him was daunting on its own, but the fact that he never asked this in the first place was increasing his resentment.

The Nomad bounced, bringing him out of his thoughts. He need to focus on the present and so he banished those feelings for now and concentrated on the road ahead.

At the back, Cora finished reading the report on Eos and tapped at her omnitool to check for the location of the monolith. As she did, the Nomad hit another pothole and she winced. Then her scanner beeped and she called their attention. "I think it's at the left, near the cliffs."

The Nomad swerved, sending a cloud of sand into the air. It sped up until they arrived just at the base massive structure jutting out from the ground whereupon it stopped abruptly. There was a silenced sound of cursing before the doors opened.

Marcus got out first, wincing and rubbing his shoulder where the belt ate into it. "Awesome driving, Ryder," he said to Scott. "You managed to hit every rock here in Eos."

They swept the area. The structure was dark-colored as the ones they saw back at Habitat 7 but it seems to have no opening. There were three main parts. One looked roughly like an isosceles triangle, with fins at the hypotenuse, running up and into the sky and where its endpoint was overlooking the other structure. The other one was composed of three pillars situated in points of a perfect triangle and whose ends nearly meet at a space above the center, overlooking the central hub. There were also octagonal shapes, some standing up and spread out in a pattern they could not discern or embedded in the ground like a mosaic. The dark floor was raised above the sand, grooved with lines glowing green and angled at corners same as the walls except some portions have glowing glyphs inscribed on it.

At the center stood a console similar to the one Alec has used back at Habitat 7.

Nothing popped out from the dunes or pillars so they put their guns away. They scanned the structures, but their scanners were telling them nothing.

"It looks inactive," Marcus observed. Scott approached the console and stood before it.

He remembered that his father worked on one to activate the structure. Maybe it would do the same thing here. He held his hand just above the surface of the console, mimicking what his father did at Habitat 7. Its surface rippled and then octagon buttons rose up to meet his hand. He was about to ask SAM what to do next when a shadow appeared over his hand-

"Look out!" Cora yelled. He spun quickly, reaching for his gun but too late, a figure dropped on him from above. His back slammed hard against the floor and a sharp pain exploded on the back of his head as his helmet made contact with the hard floor. He winced, and when his vision cleared, he saw an asari girl sitting on top of his chest, her face close to his. Too close.

"How did you do that?" she chirped. 'I've spent months trying to activate that thing and-"

"Get off him," Cora barked, shoving her gun's muzzle in her face. The asari turned to her, putting her hand up and rose slowly off him. Cora gestured at her to back away and keep her distance so Marcus can lend a hand to let him up. Scott accepted the hand and winced when he was pulled to his feet. He looked at his attacker.

She seemed to be an asari on her maiden stage, wearing a worn, puffy jacket the color of the desert and a hood pulled back from her head. Tight, dark pants and scuffed boots completed the look. She was holding up her hands, which were covered by tattered gloves. Her baby blue face peeked from her hood, the pinkish across her cheeks stretching as she said petulantly, "I didn't mean any harm. I was just excited because no one has activated that console before," she said, speaking rapidly.

His head still hurt so he hunched and put his hand on his hips as he talked to her. "Sorry. Who are you and how did you get the drop on us?" he panted.

"Oh that, I'm K!" she said, extending a hand, which they just stared at pointedly. A second passed then she took it back and placed it behind her. "I'm part of the team from Site 2 Resilience. I've been here for weeks studying that console and avoiding the kett wandering in the site, generally," she said, gesturing vaguely and lamely at the distance. "As for your second question, I was up there," she pointed at one of the overhanging structure, "I thought you were the aliens and so I hid. When I heard you talk then when the console reacted to you-"she pointed at Scott, " I couldn't contain my excitement. I had to go down and ask you how you did it!"

She said she was a scientist, but she seemed more like an overexcited gerbil. "How do we know who you say you are?" Scott asked her, still winded.

"Oh, that! I have an ID. Here," She opened her omnitool and tapped on it. Their omnitool beeped to alert them that it has received her credentials.

"Kannathea D'yseris," Scott read. "Tech researcher."

"I go by K. Kannathea is too long, you know?"

Scott looked up to stare at her and agreed. By the way she fidgets as she stood there, it really was too long for her. "Ok…K. I'm Scott Ryder, human Pathfinder. This is Cora Harper and Marcus Zola," he said pointing at his companions with his thumb.

"Nice to meet you," she said and shook their hands rapidly, almost grabbing their hand. "So, can you get on with the console now?" she asked Scott.

"Hold on," Cora interrupted. "We've never met anyone who survived from the two outposts. Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes, yes," she said, annoyed, waving her hand rapidly at her. "I'm fine. Now can we get on with working on the rem-tech?"

Scott looked at Cora who looked surprised then hurt. He turned back to K. "Rem-tech?"

"Short for Remnant tech. It's what we call these for now," she said, waving at the structures.

"What can you tell us about it? Like how it works and what it's for?"

"Eh, there's nothing much I can tell you. For months, we haven't been able to crack this console. But it's reacting to you so," her face turned eager at him, "how did you do it?"

He exchanged a look with Cora and Marcus. "Well, it was not actually me who's doing it. It was SAM. SAM did most of the work back at Habitat 7."

"SAM? Habitat 7?"

"Hello, K," SAM greeted.

She snapped her head up and looked around for the source of the voice, then turned slowly to face them. "That's an AI isn't it?" she asked suddenly.

They looked at each other then at her. "How'd you figure that out?" Scott asked.

"I'm a tech researcher. I work with machines for most of my life. I am pretty sure I could tell an AI apart from a VI. A VI would never initiate an action independent of its controller."

"Correct. I am an AI," SAM said. "I was designed by the Andromeda Initiative to assist the Pathfinders in finding new homes for the colonists."

They were worried how'd she react. Artificial Intelligence was illegal back in the Milky Way and they feared she might be carrying the same attitude of those who banned it. But she only said, "That's fair. You'll need help trying to colonize this rock" and asked about Habitat 7.

They told her what happened at the planet. After they finished, K fell silent, thinking, then she looked at Scott with a somewhat manic expression. "If what you say is true, then something about SAM is making these structures react. We've run VIs on this console and we've never had success like yours."

This kept getting stranger and stranger. Scott assumed that it was SAM's advanced processing that was making the consoles work but now that she told them it wasn't...

Scott turned to the console and looked back uncertainly at her.

"Well? Go on," she urged, flipping her hand rapidly at it.

"So, like this?" he said, hovering his hand above the console. Suddenly, bots appeared from thin air. Some of them remind them of a black colored jellyfish, with a tail running below them as they levitated off the ground. They seem to have one optical sensor, which they used to scan at the ground. One looks like a mechanical crab, with pinchers at front and levitating while one type hopped on the ground on two legs with a big round head.

"Remnant bots. Kill them fast, they respawn," K said as she ducked behind cover and the bots started shooting lasers at them. The three scrambled to find cover and started shooting.

"Did you know they will appear?" Scott shouted at her. He looked around his cover and managed to nail one of the hoppers mid-hop. It went sprawling on the hard, dark floor.

"Sometimes! They always reappear at intervals," she shouted back. She swept her hand up and a hopper went floating in the air.

"Could you have told us that earlier?" he shouted, firing on one advancing on their flank.

"Sorry. It slipped my mind!"

The one with a laser eye was protected by a shield so Scott shot at it with an electric bolt. It fried up, twitching in the air as Scott pumped it full of bullets until it crashed. A shot zipped past him and he ducked back into cover. The hopper jumped over the blocks to chase him when suddenly, it was floating in the air. Then something flashed and it burst into pieces, Cora setting back down gently. The one near the pillars swiveled to shoot her when Marcus appeared behind it and buried both his omni-blades in its back, sawing it in half. Two more bullets in its face and it stopped twitching.

"I don't know how they work or how to turn them off," K panted. "But shooting at them always stops them."

Marcus chuckled. "Almost everything does when you shoot at it long enough," he said.

Scott smiled at his quip and resumed working on the console. "SAM?"

"One moment," it answered. "I cannot interact with it. It appears that you need to manually input a specific set of glyphs."

"Glyphs? Where would we find that?"

"There are glyphs at the walls all around you. Scan the walls and I will run its probabilities of being the right glyph against the console."

Scott went around and scanned all the glyphs they found. Then he went back to the console and tried again.

"I have identified the necessary glyphs and set it. To activate the console, a puzzle using the glyphs need to be solved. It is composed of a three by three grid, with each grid containing a three by three box. The glyphs are scattered on each box where each glyph do not repeat by either row, column or grid. This is the puzzle."

SAM showed it to Scott internally.

"You're kidding me," Scott said as soon as he saw it. "You mean to tell me that the key to a mysterious, advanced alien structure is Sudoku?"

"Oooooooh!" K said, nearly jumping as she clapped her hands. "Think about it Ryder! We may have moved to a new galaxy, but we aren't sure if the rules we have still apply here. The laws of physics still does of course, but what you did now confirms that our rules of logic are also being followed by inhabitants here! I'm so happy to be here even though I spent months of work without success. I don't even mind that you've made the first discovery."

"I'm feeling very honored about it, believe me," Scott said dryly. "So, these glyphs. They are...numbers, not letters?"

"Unknown," SAM replied. "However, the arrangement of the glyphs appears to complete either a password or a code phrase within the grid as a whole. From the little I understand of it, they appear to form an almost palindromic "Sator Square" sentence, but the finer meaning would require detailed explanation from the grid's designer."

"Well, they're not here now," Cora remarked.

"I have the solution to the puzzle. It is-"

"I got it SAM. I think I can handle a simple Sudoku puzzle," he said. Just because he has an AI in his head meant that he can now afford to be dumb.

Scott took a few minutes, even longer when he felt Marcus' gaze on his back, silently criticizing him for not using the easy way out and K's palpable excitement. Finally, he put the solution in and SAM confirmed it to be the right one before running it through. A sound from somewhere deep sounded then the tip of the larger pillar went bright. A ray of light emanated and pointed somewhere past the mountains.

They stared at it then Scott said, "Huh. Anyone taking my bet that that's where we're going next?"

* * *

"C'mon, let me come with you!" K said, tripping behind them as they walked towards the Nomad. Scott reached the driver's side and opened the door. "Sure. get in and we'll drop you off Site 1. We'll fetch you later after we're done dealing with the monoliths."

She held the door open as Scott was about to go inside. "No, I meant let me come with you following the monoliths."

Scott shook his head. "It's dangerous. You saw what happened when we activate the monoliths. Besides, we can't protect you all the time." They can't afford to have even one of them distracted by protecting a civilian while going through their mission.

She just laughed. "I've been through worst. You think those bots can kill me? Besides, you saw I'm not a slacker at fighting. I'm pretty sure I can hold my own if we come under fire."

Scott was silent, weighing her arguments so she begged, "Please. This is what I came for Andromeda for. To discover things. And now that I found something just beyond my wildest imaginations, you're not letting me."

"We aren't sight-seeing. We'll take you there as soon as it's safe, I promise."

"It'd be too late for that. What if there's something you need an expert for but you had to pass it quickly and so you can't go back there? Someone like me? Look, I know it's dangerous but I never pretended that discovery does not involve danger. I'm not that naive. And I can take care of myself."

Scott eyed her. He doesn't want her to go and endanger herself with them but he knew from the determined look in her eyes that she would follow them anyway. So he shrugged, smiled and said, "Get in then," which she did with a whoop of joy. She sat at the back and saw Cora beside her. "Hi," she said giddily at her.

"Hello," Cora replied, her smile strained. Then she looked ahead and her eyes connected with Scott's though the mirror. Scott caught it, and shrugged. And then they were off.

They followed the light until they arrived at another monolith. After activating it, the same thing happened and the monolith pointed a path to them. They followed it again and found another monolith. Unfortunately, there's the hostile alien base at the bottom, its bulbous body built on the middle of the path to the structure, blocking the only way to it. The entrance to their destination can only be reached though the central room which was protected by a force field so they had to wade through its defenses and stop the generators on the walk ways. As usual, the aliens refused to talk and preferred to fire at them. They reduced the generators to slag heaps and entered the main room. They were mopping up there when they heard rumbling and shouts somewhere around them. They took positions and watched alertly for the source of the commotion.

Glass broke and fell all around them, followed by an alien dog which landed wetly in front of them. They looked up to where it came from and saw a krogan on a deck above them. The krogan made a rumbling laugh, then jumped and landed just beside the alien, the floor shaking with his weight. They scrambled from cover and surrounded him. His golden reptilian eyes glared at them, examining them from head to foot then he growled, "Who are you?"

"Could ask the same," Scott said, his rifle pointed at the krogan. The krogan had brown but dull looking skin, almost grayish. His dusty, nicked yellow armor was decorated with bones, with a pair framing his face. He had white spikes protruding from his chin and he looked old. But his eyes were still sharp as he looked at them, weighing them. Then he noticed the logo on their armor, a stylized A and I.

"Initiative," he sniffed.

"Yes. Exile?" Scott asked him in return.

He snorted. "Sort of. Still haven't told who you are," he said with a jab of his finger.

"We're not obligated to tell you anything," Cora said, her shotgun pointed at him.

The krogan looked at her and gave a guttural laugh. "I like you," he said in a low rumbling voice, pointing at her. "You're brave for such a squishy species." It seems Cora amused him enough that he sobered. "I'm Drack from clan Nakmor."

"Nakmor?" Scott asked, surprised. "Are you related to Nakmor Kesh?"

"Ah. I see you've met my grand-daughter. Yes, we're family. Now, mind telling me your names?"

They lowered their guns. "I'm Scott Ryder. The human Pathfinder," Scott said and introduced his team. "This is Marcus Zola, Cora Harper and K."

He nodded. "Good. I'll remember your names when you die out here like everyone else did," he said. Then he turned his back to them, lumbering to the side of alien animal without worry at their guns still drawn at him.

"Oh, come on. We're not that weak," Marcus protested.

"Sure," the krogan said, without turning around to face him. He drew out a knife, ignoring the gasps and clutching of guns behind him and sawed away at the fang of the animal. ""The Nexus knows shit about these aliens. They think they're safe, but they're just waiting to die out there in space."

"You've been a lot of fights then?" Scott asked, an idea forming in his head, as he walked near the krogan.

"I've been quads deep on a couple o' planets for a while now. Taking out these bases. Fighting ground troops. I know what they can do."

"Look, we're pretty new around here," Scott said carefully. "We could use a veteran like you."

Drack stopped his work, and turned around to eye him. Then he laughed again. "I'm flattered, but do you have any idea how many humans I've watched die? You're meat. You spoil. Besides, the day I help the Nexus again is the day the clouds part and these aliens keel over."

"Alright then," Scott said, rising up. "We won't be bothering you," he signaled his team to be on their way.

The krogan was still looking merrily at them. "Tell you what, kid. I've been looking for a squad of mine who got lost some time ago. They're a bunch of youngsters from my clan. If you give me some news of them, then maybe I'll help you."

* * *

They activated the monolith which gave forth light that joined the others, intersecting and pointed a way beyond the hills. They followed it and climbed on top, where they saw it was pointing at a lake where a tiny island appeared in the middle.

They stood looking at it for a few moments, then K said, "Well, then, I think it's back to the Beep-Beep."

Scott looked puzzled at her. "The what now?"

"The Beep-Beep. You know, the one we arrived in," she said, pointing at the Nomad.

Scott started chuckling. "It's called the Nomad, not Beep-beep."

"But Beep-beep fit it better! It's short for Beep-beep! We're coming through, especially if it's you who's driving, Ryder."

Marcus started laughing. "I agree. Your driving is a menace. It's single-handedly wiping out the local fauna."

"Keep that up and I won't allow anyone else to drive the Beep-beep," Scott threatened.

"You're cruel, you know that?" Marcus mock whined.

Scott smirked at the reaction of the petrol-head. "Alright, stop fooling around. Let's go see where this light is leading us."


	10. Chapter 10

They arrived at the place where the lights of the monoliths intersect. It pointed to the middle of the lake but when they arrived at the shore, there was nothing there. The alien water looked still and silent so they stood there at the beach, puzzled. Then suddenly, the water rose then broke and a structure rose out of the surface. Metallic liquid poured away from it, revealing something that looked like a shed. Its roof and the ceiling under it were shaped in octagons and built from the same dark material as the monoliths and the walls were open on every side.

Then cobblestones shaped like octagons rose out of the water and formed a bridge from the edge of the lake and to the island structure. They took that as a sign for them to pass so they crossed the bridge. When they arrived at the island, they saw at the center of the floor, a passage leading onto a door shaped like a trapezoid, narrowing at the top.

Scott signaled for Cora to stay behind and watch their exit. Cora glanced at K but she nodded and took cover among the pillars while they went down the passage and approached the door. Scott went forward to examine it and saw no locks or handles.

There might be some hidden mechanism to open it, he thought. He ran his hands on the surface, searching for a catch, when SAM said, "I detect forced signs of entry."

His hands went still. "Forced signs of entry?"

"Yes. There are paint marks on the walls and burns caused by mass accelerated weapons," SAM said, looking through his eyes and at the door, analyzing the minute scratch marks and scorch residue.

He looked back to his companions. "So…we're not the first ones here?"

"That's interesting," K said. "This means whoever they are have gone past the monoliths which, we know for one, cannot be activated without help from an AI."

"But they haven't fixed the planet," Marcus pointed out.

"So they must still be in there," Scott finished.

"Maybe," K said. She walked over to the door and looked up at it. "This is getting fun," she murmured. "Now how to open the door…"

"Scott, if you could move closer to the door I can try to override the lock," SAM said.

"You're a genius, SAM," K said as Scott held his omni-tool before the door so SAM could work on it. "How are you unlocking it?"

"This door is using the same encryption as the monoliths. Using the glyphs from the monoliths, I am currently testing combinations that will unlock the door."

"So you're guessing?" Marcus asked.

"In a manner of speaking."

Scott's omni-tool glowed and the door opened.

"Great job, SAM," Scott remarked, as they gazed into the dark maw of the vault.

"I did nothing. I have not yet finished entering my solution when I was interrupted."

They looked at each other. "Interrupted?"

"That's weird," K remarked, frowning. "So why did it open then?"

"Unknown."

Scott turned his attention back to the vault, gazing into its darkness. Then he shrugged and said, "Well, the door's open so let's go." He nodded at Marcus and took point for them.

The door opened into a passage leading down into a cool underground. The chamber was dark and illuminated with the green light of its etchings like the monoliths above. They flipped on their lights and saw they were in a vast octagonal chamber with a triangular depression at the center of the floor. But it was empty.

"Hmm, that's surprising," K remarked, walking around the room with her scanner. "After all those trekking, I didn't expect this would be so empty."

Scott looked around the empty room, whirling for the one thing they need the most and found none. "That can't be right. The one at Habitat 7 had a console we needed to work on," he said, his heart sinking. If this vault couldn't help them, then they're doomed.

"Really? Hmm," K wondered. She stepped closer to the wall, staring at the glowing etchings. "Maybe not all the vaults have the same layout," she suggested. "There must be some secret here. Maybe a secret entrance." She moved closer to the walls and poked at them, running her fingers on the lines. Scott watched her, then decided to follow her lead, crossing the steps forming a triangle in middle of the room to search the wall.

Something rumbled. Heavy, like the shifting of a stone wall. They stood still, staring at each other, when another rumble occurred. Scott felt the floor moving then he realized the rumbling was coming below him. He jumped back and scrambled to the top of the steps. He saw the triangle he was standing before slid open, revealing a gap in the center of the room leading down.

K looked open mouthed at the opening then at him. "You're a genius!" she exclaimed.

"I..didn't do anything," Scott said, looking at the opening.

"You know, there's a lot of things opening with someone saying they didn't do nothing that I'm starting to think that it's not coincidence anymore," Marcus observed. "Like, it's making it easier for us because some horrible monster is at the end of it."

"You think this is a set-up?" Scott asked.

Marcus gestured all around them. "We're in space in some alien vault. It wouldn't surprise me if we ran into some sacrificial chamber down here."

Scott chuckled and shook his head. "You've been watching too many movies."

"Says the space marine. And people ask why they always die first," Marcus answered then mock sighed. He walked over to the edge and peered down below. "How far down d'ya think it goes?" Scott joined him and stood gingerly at the edge. He took out a half-spent thermal clip and dropped it in the hole. But instead of falling, it was suspended in the air. Then a blue shimmer encased it and only then did it descend below. Slowly.

"That can't be air pressure. Electrostatic?" K said, craning her neck down the shaft as safely as she could. "Ah! Gravitation. Maybe there's a gravity well at the bottom."

They watched the clip slowly descend into the shaft. Finally, it stopped, glowing faintly in the dark.

"Huh. Either there's a ground down there or it's just floating," Marcus suggested.

"Definitely not floating," K said, peering down the shaft. "The light's not moving. I think there's a floor." She looked at them. "Well? Should we go?"

Marcus shifted his legs as he squatted. "We know there's a way safely down there. But how can we go back up?"

"Maybe the same way we came down?" K answered. "Anyway, I can make a singularity at the bottom and we'll fly out to here with your jetpacks. So, can we go now?"

The two looked at each other. "Hey, I can take point but if I see eggs down there, I'm noping out of here," Marcus said. He gave a signal and he and Scott dropped one after the other. It was a long drop but they arrived intact. They arrived at a chamber just like the one above them. They went into defensive stance as soon as they landed and waited, sweeping the area. The place was silent and still; there were no hostiles waiting for them so they called K down to join them.

The chamber led to a long passage then into an enormous cavern. There were no walkways so they have to walk and jump on the blocks built into the cliffs. Sometimes, they have to use their jet pack to jump on top of the pillars made of octagons. Ferrofluid ran on gutters, illuminating the walls with blue light and there were octagon shapes standing here and there blocking their way. They were glad of that because remnant bots started appearing and attacked them. Some even appeared instantaneously in midair, ready to grab them out of cover and into the lasers of their fellow bots.

"Lots of Sexylegs," K remarked at the bodies of the hopping Remnant bots they just defeated.

"Please don't call it that," Marcus said, glancing away from the bots. Their limbs do look like legs, only with thick thighs and slender calves.

Scott smirked at him. "What's wrong, Zola? Afraid you'll shoot the wrong gun?" Then he and K started laughing while Marcus vowed that he'd get back at them later. Scott fiddled with as much consoles as he can. Some of them just make the same octagon shapes appear and disappear. Some made the octagon pillars rise from between chasms for them to jump to as bridges or steps to a ledge. There were also strangle little circles adorning the walls with wiring running from it, making the walls look like a giant circuit board. SAM said it detected a touch interface. They tried with their hands but it did not react so they left it alone.

"There is alien organic material on the surface of the console," SAM said as Scott worked on the latest one. "It is a fresh sample. Therefore, they may have been here recently."

"Maybe they're our intruders," Scott remarked. "Is it the same DNA with the aliens we encountered at Habitat 7?"

"No. It is different."

Marcus whistled low from his post, watching for anything that'll try to creep up at them. "So, we've got another alien."

"I certainly hope they're friendly this time," Scott remarked. "Maybe they own this place?"

"Hmm," K said, running her own scanner over everything and anything she can reach. "Maybe but I'm sure they didn't live here. I've seen a lot of tech and I tell you, these aren't meant for habitation or anything for organics. Also, I see traces of mineral build-ups here, in a pattern consistent with high pressure and high velocity. Like made by gases passing though a vent."

"That is possible," SAM said.

Scott stopped fiddling with the console to gape at her. "A vent? A vent for what?"

K shrugged. "No idea. But maybe we'll know if we follow it in."

Scott went still as he thought more on this. "If it's not meant for organics, then why is there a door with a lock?"

"A question for the ages," K replied and grinned at him. "Here's the adventure you're looking for."

They stopped for a moment, letting K take scans of the strange wall. He would've run thought it, appreciating it only by its use towards accomplishing their objective, but he let K indulge her curiosity. Because as she chattered to herself while scanning, he was reminded of Sara, who does the same thing when she's around very old structures. Raving about some dead civilization even at dinner time. Sara would have studied every inch of this structure like K was doing now. He doesn't get the fascination of the past, he does understand how it is to care deeply about something.

Sara should have been here.

But she wasn't and so they must do what they could at the present. And at the present, he's not the only one who cannot appreciate the strange wall, because Marcus was mouthing something, tapping impatiently at his omni-tool showing a big round clock.

"Alright, K. Time's up. We really need to get going," Scott said and herded her out of the room. They proceeded to the lower bowels of the structure. Some corridors lead to room where the robots were being assembled. Some were just an unending stretch of walls, with the strange holes in them. Some passages were barred and they had to solve sequences to open the doors so they could proceed. As they passed through, Scott felt as if they had entered into a large factory. What the factory was it for, they don't know. That did not reduce the feeling that they're walking in a trap.

He led them deeper into the vault when he chanced to glance at the corner and saw some foot prints. It was hard to tell which race it belonged to as it was badly smudged. Then he saw something glowing just beside it.

He walked towards it and picked it up. Then he waved at the others. "Hey, take a look at this."

Marcus and K came back and they all stared at the thermal clip he was holding aloft. "So…the intruders are maybe one of us," Marcus said.

"Maybe it's the missing Pathfinders?" Scott suggested.

K studied it for a bit longer. "Maybe. I don't know," she said finally. "If they are, they must be crazy smart. You need SAM to activate the vault and as far as I know, none of them were equipped with one since the Nexus AI was badly damaged."

"The aliens?" Marcus suggested.

K waved the glowing object at him. "Those aliens use our thermal clips?"

Scott turned from her and looked once more at the footprints. "Huh. Let's puzzle over it later." He pocketed the thermal clip and huffed his rifle higher as they went inward. "This vault just keeps on giving, doesn't it?" he asked as they jogged.

They arrived at a central chamber. "I think this is the end of it," K said, looking around the room. It was illuminated by a large energy beam at the center of the room running up into a sort of chimney with walls made of stacked plates that kept undulating. Both four sides of the chamber had tunnels opening out and up, much like the tunnel they arrived in.

They walked around the chamber until they were sure that it was empty besides them. "So. No big bad monster here," Scott said to Marcus.

"Yes. But where's the people who went in before us?" he asked and stepped near the ledge to check at the chasm below.

"Maybe they got out before we came in," K said.

"Wherever they are, they're not our responsibility," Scott said, with a nod at the console just beside the center of the room. Scott went near and examined it.

"This one contain more functions than the consoles we passed by," SAM said.

"So..kind of the master control. Can this one fix the atmosphere?" he asked SAM.

"Unknown. Move your omni-tool closer so I can perform a test."

He let his hand hover above it and SAM started working.

"I have found a command for climate manipulation," SAM said after a while. "Should I run it?"

Scott looked at the other two who nodded. "Do it."

"Initiating. Please stand by."

They listened to the console whirring as it worked when he felt his body freeze. "SAM?" he asked in panic.

"We are being scanned. Standby."

"Scott? What's happening?" Marcus asked, his gun clacking as he drew it, looking worriedly at Scott who was standing too stiffly before the alien console.

"I don't know!" He tried to struggle but no matter what he did, his body won't move. It seems like he was under paralysis except he can breathe and speak.

They heard a loud, low mechanical sound. The paralysis disappeared and Scott landed in a heap. Marcus immediately grabbed him and dragged him away from the console.

"What the fuck was that?" Marcus asked as he helped Scott to his feet. They stared at the console which suddenly projected a hologram of a...planet.

"It is sending us a nav point. Uploading now," SAM intoned. "The navpoint indicates a planet on a system at the other side of the cluster."

"A planet?" Scott asked, frowning. Then an idea occurred to him. "Perhaps with a vault like this too?"

"That is possible. However, it does not tell anything more than the navpoint. A further study of this vault might reveal-"

The reason for SAM's interruption was the sudden increase in intensity of the center beam's light. It also has changed color.

"Pathfinder. I'm detecting a large energy build-up below you. It's coming closer," SAM said, as the light changed from white to angry dark purple and blue.

"What does that mean?"

"Run."

They started running back to the place they entered from. Scott happened to look back and saw a dark, sparking energy cloud emerge from the floors and filling the chamber. "I don't like the look of that!"

"Keep going! It's catching up!" Marcus yelled.

They jumped over the pillars, jumped over chasms, scrambled over ledges and ran without looking back. Some bots appeared before them but they only shot suppression fire at it, ducking at their shots and kept running. Finally, they arrived at the upper level just before the one leading up to the main door and found it locked. "Shit! We're trapped!" Marcus shouted and started bashing it.

"Scott! There's a console nearby. Maybe you can override it?" K suggested.

Scott looked at it and found it a little far from them, while the energy cloud was seeping in fast. There were no other options so he ran and hovered, no, almost pushed his hand down on it.

"C'mon, C'mon, c'mon", he rattled off, looking at the energy cloud closing in on him.

It was too late. He ducked down as the cloud enveloped him, his shields dropping fast and warnings sounded inside his helmet.

"Scott!" He heard K yell. She created a biotic shield around her and Marcus just before the cloud enveloped them. It sizzled as it hit the barrier. But soon, K looked strained, as the cloud ate away her barrier while Marcus continued bashing at the door without success.

"Chamber sealing," SAM intoned.

Suddenly, the energy cloud started being suck back in. Scott held on at the console, but Marcus and K had not expected that and so got knocked off their feet. They started rolling back into the chamber, screaming. Scott held out a hand as Marcus passed by.

Marcus caught it and held out his hand for K. She passed by him, reached…then missed.

"K!" Scott yelled.

Marcus stretched out his leg. K managed to grab onto his boot, and they held on as all the energy cloud was sucked back in until the doors closed with a clang. They fell to the floor and lay there on the floor panting and gasping.

Then Marcus started laughing. He rolled over and put his hand over his face. Scott broke into a grin then K also started laughing.

"You alright?" Scott asked them.

"I'm fine. We're fine," Marcus said and stood up, shaking himself. "No face-hugging monsters here, but that was a close one."

Their comms cackled and they heard Cora's voice. "Scott? Marcus? K? Are you there?"

Scott pressed on his omnitool to answer her. "Yeah. We're alive. We've activated the vault."

"I thought so. The air was clearing up as soon as the monoliths started emitting light. Are you alright? Storm's coming so we better move out fast."

"Copy. We're fine. We're coming out in a few minutes."

"I'll inform the Nexus that the mission is a success." There was a pause. "Good job, Scott."

Scott paused, remembering the time he overheard them talking about him being the Pathfinder. "Thanks," he said, out of politeness. He didn't need anymore drama in his life. He's got more important things to worry about. "We'll meet you at the exit. Ryder out."

They trudged out the vault and emerged onto the island. Cora emerged from the pillars to meet them, relieved and glad that they made out of there alive. As she talked, Scott looked beyond her and saw that the monoliths have transformed into towers emitting a beam of light into the sky. Around each beam, a powerful storm swirled around it.

His omni-tool beeped. The air was already cold.


	11. Chapter 11

They arrived at the Nexus and were immediately directed to the conference room. The administration and the science team were already seated, eager to hear their success. Captain Dunn did not dawdle on formalities and as soon as they took their seats, asked for their report. Scott told them what happened at the vault. The administration and the science team listened attentively until he reached the point where he was frozen in place by the console. The science team sat up and exchanged looks but kept silent until he was done.

"Thank you, Pathfinder," Captain said when he finished and turned to the others. "Thoughts?" she asked, not missing the looks thrown around the table.

Professor Henrik leaned in and turned to Scott. "You said the vault scanned you?" he asked.

"Yes."

Professor Henrik sat back and exchanged another look with his team. "Well, that certainly explains …things," he muttered. Then he fixed his attention back to them. "Based on the report on Habitat 7, we expected the vault would just fix the atmosphere to be a more comfortable level. We didn't expect it to tailor Eos according to our needs. Specifically, human needs."

Captain Dunn looked piqued at him. "Go on," she urged.

"Previously, Eos has a mostly carbon dioxide atmosphere but since the Pathfinder has turned on the vault, the climate is changing into a mixture of nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere. At the rate it's going, we predict that it'd have roughly the same atmosphere as Earth in a month. However, its temperature range will be higher because of its proximity to its star, but it will be tolerable by human standards."

"So you're saying Eos can be colonized now without us spending too much effort to ensure basic living conditions," Captain Dunn said. "That's good news to me but by the looks on your faces, it doesn't sound good."

"I'm sorry. We didn't mean it that way. Of course, it is wonderful news for our colonization project," Chief Lucan said with a nod at Addison, "but our concern is more on its scientific implications. We find it interesting how the vault does its terraforming. We conducted tests on Eos soil before and the nitrogen content in it is negligible. It's also putting out other gases to cool off the planet. Gases that were not present before."

Captain Dunn just stared at him. "And this is important because…?"

The three scientists exchanged perplexed looks at each other. "It's just a scientific problem," Professor Aridana said eventually. "Nothing that adversely affects our current project. In fact, it's just going too well. But back to the vault," she said quickly and brightly, "the fact that it's tailoring its solutions to the needs of those who activated it has wonderful implications. This means that, if we assume that the holo planet at the end is a map to another vault, the vault there may be adjusted according to each of our species' need."

Chief Lucan nodded. "It's wonderful news, particularly so for us Turians. Of course, we can survive with the food grown from the labs but having a dextro planet of our own is still different."

"Or if we figure out how the vault works, we can terraform on our own," Professor Henrik suggested.

"Have you began to study it?" Captain Dunn asked them.

"Thanks to scans of the vault provided by K and SAM, we'll have some data to figure out how it works. We'll inform you later of our findings as soon as we finish. But we need to go down there personally so we can study it further."

"As soon as we secured the area," Captain Dunn said. "We'll need to establish a viable colony there and deal with the hostile aliens."

Professor Henrik nodded. "Of course. However, not all of it is good," he said gravely. "The wildlife left at Eos won't adapt to the sudden change of climate, particularly something foreign to them. We predict that soon, there will be another mass extinction of existing life in there. It is regrettable but necessary. We recommend that if we had established a colony there, the settlers should collect what they find and preserve samples, so if we find a world capable of supporting them, we can transfer them there."

Captain Dunn nodded. "I'll review your proposal later. Anything else?" she asked around the table.

"I also found this in the vault," Scott said and brought out the thermal clip. It rolled to the center of the table where it drew the attention of everyone. Sloane leaned forward to examine it. "So one of ours got in it," she observed. "If so, then where are they now? Why haven't they fixed the vault?"

"We don't know. We just found it there along with some scuff marks," Scott answered.

"Maybe it came from the missing Pathfinders?" Captain Dunn suggested.

"Maybe. But the exiles also carried this," Sloane pointed out.

"We found an exile down there at an alien base in one of the monoliths. His name's Nakmor Drack," Scott informed them, looking at Kesh.

Kesh grunted and shook her head. "Ugh. Yes, he's my grandfather, and he's not an exile. He's looking for his scouts lost a while back. If anyone's brave enough to tell a Krogan veteran what they can and cannot do, please stand up." When no one moved, she turned to Scott. "Though I don't know why this is even relevant to the discussion?"

"Just pointing out the fact that other people can survive in Eos before we activated the vault," he answered and turned away from her. "We have no information about the Pathfinders. We never saw a trace of them down there other than the thermal clip if we assume that it came from them."

They sat looking at the thermal clip for a moment then Captain Dunn cleared her throat. "Whatever this means, our Security Team will take care of it," she said with a look at Sloane who nodded. "But keep looking for any clue about the Pathfinders' whereabouts. So moving past that, are there any more questions?" No one said anything, so she turned to the Nexus Science Team. "Good work, Nexus team." Then she turned towards Scott. "And good work, Pathfinder team. We'll arrange a ceremony at Eos for the first time we settle. You and your team will be there for the ground-breaking rights and formal turn-over of the planet to the designated colony mayor, August Bradley. But as for now, Addison arranged an informal party here to celebrate. Despite what we've been through and the people we lost, we have proven now that the Initiative was a success. Good job, everybody." She beamed at them. "I'll see you at the atrium."

* * *

"So, how does it feel to have made history?" Marcus said to Scott as they kept beaming at the people either requesting their picture, chatting with them or simply just being seen with them. They were wearing formal dress, which was a plain white suit with the Initiative logo and blue stripes paired with white pants. Most people were dressed casually or whatever dress they have that is festive or new enough for the occasion. Others were wearing their work gear but who cares what they're wearing? This was their first win after so many disasters.

The atrium was temporarily transformed into a function hall. There was a surprising amount of booze, and they were eating real food now instead of nutrient paste. Kesh really outdid herself here. Addison tried to make the party formal, but Captain Dunn put her foot down and decided that they'd have enough formalities during the turnover ceremony at Eos. So at her speech, with the vista of the Tempest behind her, she just told them to eat and be merry for once, because they all earned it.

"Last time I remembered, you were there, Zola. You tell me," Scott answered. He looked up and saw Keri T'Vessa waving at them from the deck above. She looks happy to be back as a reporter instead of being a tech jockey as she had done ever since the Nexus arrived. She and her cameraman were maneuvering through the throng of people, perhaps to corner them again for an interview so they moved away, pretending that someone just out of their reach was calling them.

"Pretty damn great. I can't believe what we've achieved down there," Marcus answered as they squeezed through the people between the stairs and the trees in the middle of the floor. "Just the four of us…and SAM of course. Hey, has anyone find out how to make a computer drunk?"

"Please don't. I need my driver sober because I am going to get smashed tonight."

Marcus grinned. "Of course. You deserve it."

Through the course of their escape, they ran into Sloane. "Good work out there, Pathfinder," she said, grinning. Her smile is as sharp as the spiky, inflated rubber-like shawl she has around her neck. "I almost expected you'd get yourself killed just like all those people who get the job because Daddy said they can."

He glared at her. "Are you actually saying that I wanted my father to die just so I can have his job?"

Her smile wobbled and then disappeared. "Well…no."

Scott just looked at her with disgust. "Whatever, Sloane. I didn't come here to quarrel with you." So saying, he pushed past her until they're out of earshot.

"What a bitch," Scott muttered and threw back his drink. His mood was starting to sour and they're barely an hour in.

"I know. But don't let her ruin your night, ok? She's not worth it," Marcus said.

They decided to grab a few more drinks to forget what Sloane said so by pushing and shoving through the crowd, they found themselves beside Cora, who was leaning on the counter of the merchant shop converted temporarily into a bar. She was typing something on a datapad.

"You're got work even on this night?" Scott asked her incredulously.

Her fringe bobbed up and across her face as she looked up. "No, it doesn't work. I'm arranging with Addison the details of the funeral service for your father and the others." She realized what she just said and immediately put a hand over her mouth. "I'm sorry. I'm not supposed to tell you here."

His mood, already soured by Sloane, got dinged even further. "What service?"

She looked pleadingly at Marcus but he shook his head. So she sighed. There was no point in keeping it secret any longer. "We didn't have time to deal with them and Captain Dunn decided it's offensive to you if they did it without telling you about it. They're thinking of conducting it after the turn-over of Eos. As well as coordinating the details, I'm preparing a speech for them." She peered at him. "Unless..you have one for your father?"

Scott did not know how to deal with that yet. He pushed his feelings at the back of his mind because their mission comes first. Other people's needs come first. He didn't even visit Sara yet and tell her that they really made it.

_If he started thinking about it..._

"I don't think I can do it," he answered. "I'll be greatly honored if you speak for us all, Cora."

She nodded. "Of course."

"Thank you." He smiled as brightly as he could. "I'm sure you have plenty of things to do and I hate paperwork. I admit I'm a very selfish guy so I'll just leave you alone."

She opened her mouth to say something, then thought it over and decided just to nod. Scott and Marcus took their drinks and with a nod at Cora, they walked away.

"Hey, man," Marcus said, catching up to him. "Are you alright?"

Scott paused. "Honestly, I'm not. I really need to get smashed."

"Alright then. but you know, we're always here if you need to talk."

Scott smiled. "Dr. Lexi may have already beaten you to the punch, Zola."

Marcus grinned and shrugged. "Ah, well. There's no competing with an Asari."

Scott downed the drink in his hand and thought about asking for their strongest drink. Hang-over is a bitch but he'd rather be insensible right now.

* * *

A few days after the turn-over of Eos, a small crew of the Hyperion and the Pathfinder team gathered before one of the Nexus' docking bay to pay their last respects to some of the Pathfinding team who lost their lives to save them. Scott stood before the dark grey casket of his father. To his side were the families of Greer, Fisher and Markland, holding their pictures in their hands and sobbing. He was more fortunate than they were, for they had his father's body from Habitat 7, while the others had only their personal effects inside the caskets.

He had talked to Sara that morning. Though she still hasn't woken, Dr. Carlyle and SAM managed to talk to her through her implant and their connection. It was only for a few minutes, but Sara asked where their Father is if they had reached Habitat 7 and what Habitat 7 was like. He lied about all three.

"Why do I feel like you're crying, Scott?" her voice asked him, reverberating inside his mind.

Scott was holding her hand, but she can't feel it. "I'm just…happy that you're alive."

She was about to ask further but the connection ended. Dr. Carlyle assured him they'd try later.

Captain Dunn stepped forward to the podium. She looked over the crowd and started. "We are gathered here today to make final respects to our honored dead. And yet all should know that this death takes place in the shadow of the new world. A world to start new lives, new journeys and new adventures. A world they have paid for dearly, but dearly bought. A sacrifice we will remember as long as we live as well as our children's children." She looked behind her and nodded at Cora. She went forward as Captain Dunn stepped back. "My name is Cora Harper. I'm part of the Pathfinder team and their friend and colleague. I am here to say that I'm honored to have been with them."

Scott looked down as Cora told them about their family members so no one can see how wet his eyes are. He heard her tell little anecdotes, words and sayings she had learned from them. Flattering portraits, as if the dead men were gods who had just dropped for a visit, imparted their wisdom and then returned to their heavenly dwellings, never to return. But funerals are for the living, not the dead.

They all finished with the speeches and assembled to send the caskets into the atmosphere of the world below them, where it will burn to ashes. They formed a line on either side, as each casket passed between them with the music singing them goodbye. The former soldiers did a salute as they passed, while Fisher's mother reached out and touched her son's casket one last time, sobbing while holding on to his portrait.

Scott held on the salute, as his father's casket burned and turned to dust.


	12. Chapter 12

Before the Pathfinding Team left for the turn-over ceremony at Eos, Kesh called Scott over to discuss something in her office.

"Hey, Kesh. What's up?" Scott asked as he entered, his tone cheery and his step light. He was not of the type to dwell long on negative emotions and he had the establishment of their first colony to look forward to. He told himself there's no time to dwell on himself when there's still work to be done.

Kesh waited for him behind her desk, her office clean and free of the crates he last saw in it. It has the same boring Initiative office design, boxy and filled with only utilitarian furniture. But it did look remarkably improved even though it had no personality whatsoever. "Nothing serious. Just going to ask a favor."

He slowed to a stop. The word favor never failed to make suspicion crawl down his spine. "A favor?"

She nodded. "Yes. It's about my grandfather, Drack. I remember you've met down at Eos."

He tipped his head back slightly. Ah yes, the laughing krogan. "Yep."

"He's down there to search for his scouts and he said there's been no sign of them. Maybe they were abducted by the aliens. Well, since you both are going to be travelling much, I think it's a good idea for both of you if you take him with you. He's a veteran so he won't be a burden. I've talked to him already on assisting you as best he can in exchange for letting him in. So, will you take him?"

He did thought it then a good idea for him to join them but he's not looking forward to be with someone who laughed in his face when he asked it. He did have a little pride after all. "I don't know Kesh. He doesn't seem the type to play nice with other people."

Kesh snorted. "He's just a crochety old man. But he wouldn't harm anyone without reason. I assure you he'll behave as a favor to me."

He thought it over but then a completely different idea occurred to him. "I get it, you're worried for him."

Kesh rolled her eyes. "Yes, fine. I am worried for him. He's tough but he's lived for so long that it's possible he'll end face up down there at the desert. Besides, no amount of roaring at the wind will bring back his scouts so it's only common sense that he teams up with you."

"Aw, look at you all soft inside," he teased.

"Yes, yes. Beneath all this tough leather, we Krogans have a heart too," Kesh replied drily. "Or hearts. Now will you take him or not or shall we keep comparing the softness of our insides?"

"Now, there's no need for the violence," Scott said, half-laughing. "Fine, I'll take him."

Kesh nodded. "Thank you, Pathfinder. Talk to me when you want to cash it in."

Still chuckling, Scott left her office, past the atrium and onto the docking bay where his team was waiting for him. He contacted them to ask whether everything was ready and they answered that all systems are go. When he reached the tube to the door towards their ship, he slowed to a stop, seeing Kesh's grandfather before it. Though he said he was going to take the old man with him, seeing the old krogan face to face brought out the memory of their first meeting and he stiffened.

"Drack," he acknowledged.

The krogan stopped leaning against the door frame and straightened himself. "Pathfinder."

They stood awkwardly for a while, their efforts to breach the topic of working together tripped by them sizing each other up. "So…I just talked to Kesh. I take it we'll be working with each other now?" Scott finally said.

"Sure. I help you do your job, you help me find my scouts. It's a good deal."

"Right. So anything I should know before I let you board my ship?"

Drack's reptilian eyes narrowed at him then he smirked. "Looks like you're still mad at me for laughing at you back in Eos," he rumbled. "It was nothing personal. I would've laughed at any grunt then who ask me to join them while looking like they can't survive another day, much less a week. The fact that you're standing here alive meant you're not as weak as I thought."

"And why is it that I should have your approval?" he asked with slight irritation.

"I've been through the Rachni war and the Krogan Rebellions. I have enough of carrying weaklings through a fight."

He drew back slightly, in awe. It was very rare to see someone as old as him in a profession where young people usually die. But on the other hand, he may still be carrying a grudge from those wars. "My job involves working with other aliens. In fact, my pilot is a salarian and my procurement officer is a turian."

He snorted. "You know, to us the measure of a warrior depends on the measure of their enemies. Your people are safe from me. I don't war on civilians. So I don't give a shit about them. I only want to find my scouts."

Drack looked intimidating and imposing, with his grizzled face, the sharp eyes and the bones of giant beasts all around his armor. He also thought he's of a taciturn disposition and so there's nothing else he could gain from him. Besides, he already promised to Kesh to take him with them so all this conversation was unnecessary posturing. He admitted that much, and also thought it was silly. So he put his wounded pride aside and held out a hand to the krogan. "We could use your experience."

Drack met it with his hand. "And you'll have it."

"Welcome aboard, Drack."

He nodded. Though they agreed to work together, it did not mean they will be friends and so walked through the connecting tunnel with a lukewarm air about them. They reached the door and Scott was about to use his omnitool to open it when someone called his name.

"Pathfinder! Scott Ryder! Wait for me!"

He turned around and saw K running towards them, lugging a suitcase behind her, the wheels screeching on the gleaming white floor. She stopped in front of them, panting heavily and said, "If he can come, then I can come too," she said, pointing at Drack.

"K?" Scott asked, surprised. "I thought you're with the Nexus science team?"

"Pfft. They're nice, but it's so boring, sitting all day looking at reports, you know? I'd rather be in the field, in the middle of the action. Now that's exciting. Besides, they needed a field agent, someone who know what to look for out there. I mean do you have anyone else who can spot what will be important for them and their reports?"

They don't. Suvi was also a scientist but she said she preferred a more relaxed environment when doing her research.

"I've heard you're short of engineers," she continued before he could reply. "I'm happy to tell you that I'm a certified ship mechanic. Well, not on cutting edge ships like the Tempest but I learn very quickly I promise. Why people say I'm just as good as a quarian when it comes to ships."

"You've talked to Kesh," he said, deducing where she knew about their need of engineers.

She swayed slightly as she stood. "Not exactly. I just listened here and there."

"Of course," he said, remembering how she sneaked up on an elite team like them back at the monolith to get a drop on him. Literally.

She clapped her hands. "So, can I come with you? Please?" she begged.

"You sure the science team won't miss you?"

"Pretty sure even a meteor would pass by them and they wouldn't notice. Well, except Chief Lucan. He's really into rocks, particularly if its shiny. But I'm not a rock so I'm sure he won't miss me."

He chuckled. "Alright, K. If no one's going to complain, then welcome aboard," he said. He thought well of her due to their adventure at the vault and did not doubt her ability to keep up with them.

K shot her hands up in the air. "Yes! Thankyouthankyouthankyou. Nowshallwego?" she said and half pulled, half pushed them into the door.

* * *

As the Tempest sailed towards Eos, Scott thought it he should get started on knowing his crew. He started with the people he was familiar with. Though they had trained together before they left for Andromeda, it was six hundred years ago and they spent most of the time training than getting to know each other. He went to one of the rooms on the cargo bay and found Marcus pushing an old couch across his room. "Moving day?" he joked.

"Nah," Marcus said. He stood up and patted his hands. "Just moving it someplace because I got tired staring at the wall so maybe I'd thought I'd stare at the other wall. It'd be a nice change of view, especially since there's a water spot here I could admire."

"Is this some hint that I should get you a vidscreen?"

Marcus gave him an amused look. "What would I watch out of it? It's not like there's rugby tournaments here in Andromeda."

"A shame. Your couch really need people sitting on it cheering on their favorite teams," he remarked, looking at the couch, worn, gray but still comfy looking in the dimly lit room. The room was still bare; Marcus' rucksacks piled on the foot of his drawers beside the made bed.

"Yep," Marcus agreed, patting its leather back. "All the more reason we should hurry up and get the colonies up and running," he said. He sat on one end of the couch and pat the seat next to him. "Anyway, you brought anything out the ol' Milky Way?"

"Nope. Just the clothes on my back," Scott answered, sitting at the other end, the couch sagging under his weight. "So I'm guessing this is yours?"

"Yep," he said. "When I signed up to go here at Andromeda, I never expect we'd live in the lap of luxury, you know? Like having your own comfy bed. I'd experienced sleeping in hammocks and lying on the ground, but at the end of the day, I'd really need something proper to lie on. And why not my old couch? It'd be comfortable after a long day and you could just lie back and pop a beer while watching some reruns. And also annoy stingy people." He chuckled. "The face they made when I told them this is my one thing was priceless."

Marcus twisted up and bent to the side, rummaging at the side table. Finally, he raised himself up, holding two bottles. "Beer?"

Scott smiled and took one. "You're prepared for anything, huh?"

"Nah. Just good old hospitality." They popped it open and fell silent for a while as they savored the last beers from the Milky Way.

Scott looked at Marcus closely. Before they went into cryo, the Pathfinding team had done some drills on some possible scenarios they might be facing. Marcus was mostly the one facilitating them, giving them tips and strategies when they find themselves in crisis situations, well beyond the basic military training Scott got from the Alliance. He acts like an NCO and yet his demeanor wasn't exactly soldier-like. He's far too relaxed even in professional settings and does not observe military decorum.

"You don't look like a military man to me," he observed.

"That's because I'm not like you and Cora. I was a cop."

"Ah, figures. So, how'd a cop end up here?"

"Same reason why anyone would quit the force. They just don't wanna be cops anymore."

"You were burned out?"

"Yep," Marcus said, with a quick glance to the left. "There's a limit to battered children, carved up victims and overdosed teens you can take, right? Figured if I'd be seeing the worst a human body can take, might as well be where it isn't your fellow humans doing it. I don't want to just patrol neighborhoods though, so after two years, I took a lateral promotion to crisis response. Digging people out of trouble was far better to everyone than pulling a father away from carving up their child's face then get suspended because I used 'too much force'. Anyway, that's how I heard about Heavy Urban Search Terran 1. HUS-T1 but we call it HUSTL. It's Earth's contribution to the crisis response program of the Citadel, helping each other out so we can learn to play nicely. You get the drift. Anyway, it sounds good to me and I joined up along with some vets and civilians looking for some challenge. We get sent into natural disasters, war zones and industrial accidents across the Milky Way. I can rival Cora on how many worlds we traveled. That's how I know how to act in alien environments." He cocked his head at him. "And that's how I met your father."

He sipped his beer then exhaled in satisfaction. "I was helping out during a factory collapse at Eden Prime. Some batarian mercs thought they could get quick credits if they took people hostage. But the owner was stingy so they decided to torch the place along with everyone in it. We got called in and your father happened to be in the area. He was looking then for people who can thrive in any critical situation and I fit the bill."

"And my father what, sweet talked you?"

Marcus chuckled. "Well, no one really says no to your father. If an N7 and a famous hero says drop everything, you drop everything."

"Really? You really came all the way here because my father said so?"

"I'm joking. Of course I've thought about the deal after he presented it to me. Going to another galaxy? Not only does it sound ballsy, it really does get my goat. The unknown is my playground. I thrive in it. So yes, Andromeda sounds really good to me."

"Do you have a family?"

"Yes. My folks weren't pleased when I told them about my decision, especially my mom. She was sobbing really hard. I was her baby, you understand. My brother and sisters didn't really understand too and tried to make me stay. They reaaaally tried hard to make me stay. In the end, I got my last rites then I joined your father." He turned to Scott. "So what about you? What made you come to Andromeda?"

Scott paused as he thought how to phrase his true feelings. Marcus looked so amazed by his father that he thought it rude if Alec's own son say he didn't believe in his legend. So he settled on a safe answer. "My family is here. Besides, I've always wanted to explore."

"Of course," Marcus replied. If he noticed his hesitation, he did not show it. "Looks like we both get our wish," he said cheerfully and raised his glass for a toast.

* * *

Scott emerged onto the research deck when he heard scuffling from the biolab, which doubled as Cora's quarters. He stopped, listening but the sounds weren't abating and so he went to investigate. He knocked on the door and heard Cora's muffled voice inside telling him to come in. The door opened and he found Cora, squatting down, shoving containers under the plant beds as she tidied up. The plants suspended above her shook as she put away each one.

"Something wrong?" he asked her.

She turned to him, her fringe flicking away from her hair and swaying back to rest gracefully on one side. "Maybe," she answered and stood up, slapping her hands free of dirt. The plants bobbed and swayed, the stems quivering and the tender leaves trembling.

"Anything I can do to help?"

Her lips thinned and she paused to answer. Then she ran a hand over her hair and sighed irritably. "It's just my biotics acting up. I don't normally lose it like this. A huntress should have a better control," she answered.

"A huntress?"

"Yes." She sat down on one of the crates and motioned for Scott to use the seat near her. As he sat, he reflexively glanced beyond the curtain hanging in the middle of the room which Cora seem to be using as a temporary divider and bunched to the side. Though there were a lot of crates stacked around, her room was neat and orderly, the bed made with the bedsheet tucked in the corners. Her boots were arrayed shiny on the foot while her clothes hang pressed and clean in the slightly open cabinet. "When I joined the Alliance, I was sent on an interstellar biotic program headed by the asari, Therys's Daughters. Of course, I didn't know then that the Alliance had their own secret biotic program BAat and I was sent to the asari as a cover. Still, I'm lucky I guess that I did not end up in BAat."

"How was it like being in the asari program?" he asked.

"Me and Janae were the babies. Tethys was our sniper. Kalia patched us between fights while Valenza prayed between firefights. Our CO, Nisira, led us all over Athena Nebula, hunting pirates, pacifying dissidents and eliminating terrorists."

As she talked, he saw her face slowly relax as she reminisced about her time with the asari. "You seem really to enjoy your time with them there," he said softly.

She smiled. "Yes. But Alliance needed me back so I have to go and leave them."

"And then you discovered that you're just a cover."

She nodded. "It was a great shock to me. I thought the Alliance were interested in the advancement of our race through biotics because they really wanted our race to improve. I never suspected they only see it as a way to one-up the other races." She shrugged. "Still, I can't complain after everything they've done for me." She smiled apologetically again when she saw him confused. "I'm sorry. I'm telling it wrong. Maybe I should start from the beginning."

"Let's hear it."

She put her hands together, inhaled and expelled loudly. "Well, I was born from merchants who deal mainly with transporting cargo between worlds. Sometimes, the cargo they're transporting is eezo. My mother has been handling them and also worked around the ship drive as the chief engineer. She worked there even when she was carrying me. So I was exposed to eezo in the womb and that was how I was born a biotic. I'm lucky I was born one and not with a brain tumor as it usually happens, but my parents felt a lot of guilt over it. It got worse as I grew older. They didn't make enough money to hire someone to teach me how to control my power. Meanwhile, the Alliance are interested in biotics and on people who have them. They eventually heard of me and offered to my parents. They have the resources, the knowledge and the implants. My parents…decided to give me up."

"I'm sorry. That must be hard."

She shook her head, the fringe swaying to and fro across her eyes. "It was hard when I was young and can rip APC apart without effort and then have my peers and teachers look at me in fear. Everyone knows, even me, that I could really hurt them even if I didn't want to. It was harder for my parents. Who wouldn't be afraid that your child may end up to be a monster even if they didn't mean to? They were also blaming themselves for the way I ended up. So they explained to me that it was best for everyone that I should be with the Alliance."

"Did you hate them for that?"

"No. I was old enough to understand what I could do."

"So after training with the asari, you went back to the Alliance."

"Yes. I did as I was expected to do. Showed people what biotics can achieve and pretty much rolled with the Alliance's campaign to have biotics as the next step in human evolution." She smiled fondly. "I remember my parents being so proud of me. Even after I left them for the Alliance, they kept track of me. They kept recordings of me in the news and everything else."

"Are your parents back home?"

The smile faded. "No. They…died. They were heading back to Earth from Eden Prime when they had an accident. Or a pirate attack. No one knows much what happened to them, only that their ship was a burned-out husk and they were ashes."

"I'm sorry."

She nodded. "Thank you. It happened a few years ago." She paused and did a quick calculation in her head. Wait, I meant 617 years ago."

"So... why did you join the Initiative?"

"After their death, I just didn't…care anymore about work. I was getting tired of being the poster child for the next generation of superhumans. Of being perfect and keeping the people inspired about our future. And then it happened and everything…didn't matter anymore. I paid my years of service so I considered resigning and just live somewhere…anywhere. Then I met your dad. Showed up on my doorstep about an insane plan to get to another galaxy. He was one persistent bastard," she said, with a wry smile. "I don't have anywhere to go anyway, so I might as well be on a new galaxy. Besides the workplace was getting toxic."

"How?"

"You understand that I was barely out of my teens when I was sent to the asari, and my only friends then were my parents. The other parents are afraid of me being close with their kid. So my first friends were the asari and they were important to me growing up. I wasn't treated like a freak or a god, but as like themselves. Normal. When the program ended, I've grown fond of them. Maybe too fond," she said and laughed ruefully. "Maybe I annoyed the other soldiers by frequently talking about them. I just missed them but I've said it aloud too many times that they thought I had…gone native. They've dropped a lot of hints that if I like them so much, then I should go live with them. I was just fond of the asari but I don't regret being human. But I guess it's too late for them."

"I didn't know it was hard on you in the Alliance."

"They're not that bad. But by then, I didn't have much to aim for." She smiled and continued in a lighter tone, "So here we are, a million light years away. Ready to make a fresh start."

He nodded, smiling also. "And hope we get lucky."

"Anything else you want to know?"

"Cora?"

"Yes?"

"You were second-in command in the Pathfinding team. Were you…friends with my father?"

She chuckled. "Your father's prickly as hell so he's more like a mentor to me. He trained me hard on being a Pathfinder so I was shocked that he chose you over me." Her eyes widened when she realized what she just said and held a hand to her mouth. "Oh, Scott, that just slip out. I didn't mean-"

"Let's have it out, Cora instead of rocking the poor, innocent plants," he said drily which made her glance up at the plant beds. The plants were fine, just a little rattled, so she turned her attention back to him. She looked unsure if she should do as he suggested, but she agreed eventually.

"When your father was training me, I thought he meant me to succeed him. He's trained me for years but you joined us only recently and barely was trained before we set out, so I never expected he would hand it to you."

"Believe me Cora, if I was only asked, I would have given it to you too."

She looked at him, thinking about his offer and concluded that it was moot. SAM cannot be separated from him now. She still appreciated the gesture, though. "But here we are. You're the Pathfinder now, despite what we wanted," she said, the smile on her lips wobbly.

"Yes."

They fell silent. Tension hung heavily between them, made of a sense of injustice on her side and resentment on his. The air was taut as a string, stretching, stretching, ready to snap. But they were loath to break it and so moved away.

"That was all I want to ask, Cora. Another time, maybe," he said, polite but stiff as he rose up.

"Yes," she replied, relieved. "Stop by if you need anything," she said and turned to tend to the plants. She did not look as the door opened to let him out.


	13. Chapter 13

After talking to Vetra, Gil, Drack, Kallo, Suvi and Lexi, he looked all over his ship for his last crew member. He was sure there were nine of them but apparently, one was missing.

"SAM, where's K?" he asked in defeat, peering at the empty quarters again.

"She is at the escape pod near the cargo bay," the AI answered.

"Escape pod? She's at the escape pod all that time? " he wondered.

"Yes. She has been in there for four hours and counting."

What was interesting about an escape pod for her to spend hours in it? he wondered as he walked to the cargo bay and went to the escape pod's door which opened before him. There he found his quarry as the AI said. She was really in there, but she was also surrounded by a bunch of equipment which he recognized as a mix of tech from Remnant and the hostile aliens.

"Woah!" he said, prompting her to turn around and face him. "What are those? And are those cleared?" he asked, pointing at the pile.

"Oh! These are just some project of mine. Yes, they're cleared; I had Gil and Kallo check them before bringing them on board. I also have containment shields put on it just in case." Scott opened his mouth to reply but she did not wait for him to answer and hurried on, "I know bringing in unknown tech is dangerous so this is why I'm working on them in an escape pod. So if it goes crazy you can just shoot the whole pod away." She paused as she thought it over. "Preferably without…me. In it. Because I'm with you. Here?" she asked him with a hopeful look.

Scott looked long at her, considering her proposal. "Well, If we did shoot the pod away with you in it, we'll be sure to inform you first."

She put a hand on her hips and laughed awkwardly. "Haha. That's so funny." Then the smile dropped and she sobered, looking fearfully at him. "Wait, you're joking, right?"

Scott smiled. "Of course I'm joking. What do you take us for, barbarians?"

She laughed-coughed in relief and she exclaimed, "By the goddess' droopy tits! Please, Scott, don't joke at me like that."

Scott chuckled at her reaction. "Okay. I promise this is the last time I'll do that."

She laughed genuinely this time and she was still smiling when she asked, "So, what can I do for you?"

"Just checking up, see how the whole crew's getting together." "Are you sure this is a good place for you to be working on that?" he asked, gesturing at the white interior of the pod which was lit up too harsh and bright, making both of them looked washed-out. "It's not very roomy. Besides, we need the escape pod just in case of, you know, this whole ship about to blow up and we need to bail?"

"I'm sorry. There isn't any more room for it anywhere on the ship and I can't work with a lot of noise around. I thought you wouldn't mind," she said, looking like a kicked puppy. "But I understand. I'll move it out."

"No. Keep it here for a moment. I'll find a space for a lab for you soon," he said, thinking of the Pathfinder's Cabin. The room was shaped like a half-moon and half as big as their cargo bay, with the king-sized bed in the middle, a little living room on the side and the study table on the other side. It was easily the prettiest room on the ship, with the screen of the passing stars at the head of the bed and the floor made of dark faux wood. But he thought it was extravagant, particularly when half his crew was forced to bunk together in a cabin a little more than a box and colored the same boring Initiative gray with only a single study table for amenities. Perhaps he can ask Gil and Vetra to partition the living room off since he rarely uses it to make a lab for K and drill a hole in the kitchen adjacent to it to make a door.

Idly, he wondered what his father would make of it if the original Pathfinding team survived. Or what he would think of his father sleeping in luxury while he's slumming it in shitty quarters.

He shook his thoughts off. Whatever. It won't happen and what was important was the present, which at this time, was beaming.

"Really?" K said, her eyes going big with happiness. "Thank you. You're so kind."

"You're welcome."

"I won't forget this. I promise you'll be the first one to view the results of my study when I'm done with them."

As if he wouldn't. Would she withhold her research if he didn't offer her a more comfortable room? he wondered.

"Great. I'll look forward to it." He nodded at the tech. "So, any progress?"

"Hmm." She turned her back to him and stood with a hip cocked and both hands on it. "Not much, particularly because they're two different systems," she said, also looking at it. "I don't know the code of that one," she said, pointing at the black Remnant tech with the glowing green lines running across its surface, "and that's one's genetically locked,' she said, pointing at the alien tech. "Also it's organically inspired, so technically, it's dead."

"Dead? How can tech be dead?"

"Well, its functions are similar to an organism than to our tech. I had Dr. Lexi take a look at it and she said there are growth lines there, like rings of a tree. Also a nervous system instead of wires."

"You mean the base back at the monolith was a tree? We're attacking a tree?"

She conjured the image of the base on her omni-tool which looked more like a head of garlic than a tree with its bulbous walls. "That doesn't look like a tree I know. But yes, something like that."

He returned his gaze at the tech, with his mouth agape. "Wow."

"Yep. Wow," she agreed, closing her omni-tool and joined him in looking in wonder at the pile.

"No regrets leaving the Milky Way behind?" he asked. "Family? Your home?"

She turned to him with a smirk. "Why would I be? My home is just a tiny village in a forest somewhere in Sanves, going overgrown with weeds you'd choke on if the old biddies there didn't get to you first with their 'great age and wisdom'," she said, with a mocking tone at the last three words. "As for my parents, I don't think they'd miss me much since they sure were prompt in kicking me out when I turned legal."

"Oh. I'm sorry," he said, forgetting that not all were lucky to have his parents.

"It's alright. They weren't bad, not really. They're just…disinterested."

"Where did you go after that?"

Her face clouded over. "Well, I went to get my degrees at the University of Plonaea at the capital, Etheai and then went on finding and fixing…stuff. I'm not rich enough to go and study unknown tech like those of the Protheans so," she expelled a breath, "here I am."

She's not rich enough to be part of the digs on Prothean artifacts but she had money to purchase a berth at the Initiative?

"But you can afford a ticket to here?"

She shifted uncomfortably. "Um, let's just say I have...someone who…paid for me," she said.

"A sponsor?"

"You can say that. Does it apply to a girlfriend?"

"Oh."

"Ex-girlfriend now, actually. I realized I can't stand her face after waking up from a very long sleep."

A thought occurred to him. Maybe that was why she was rushing to get in with them back at the docks?

He thought it wasn't good of her to bail out on someone who paid for her trip here but she was looking extremely embarrassed right now. He was about to change the subject when the intercom beeped. "Scott, Kallo here. We've arrived at Eos," their pilot informed him.

"Got it. I'll be there shortly," he answered and the line went silent.

"Well, That's it. Nice talking to you, K," he said, smiling at her. "Now let's go see our new colony." She nodded, looking very relieved that they stopped talking about her problems and together they left the pod.

* * *

Although they have secured a planet for their needs, their problems weren't over. An orbital scan of the planet revealed an outpost of the hostile aliens many miles north of the vault and shielded by unknown means. There was also some strange facilities near it, with a series of giant towers shaped like a T on a great stretch of the desert. What they were they do not know; they had no further capabilities to make extensive studies on it except cursory observations. They have no offense nor defense capabilities which did not cheer August Bradley on the prospect of his given assignment as their first colony's mayor. 'Between Scylla and Charybdis' was how he put it. Either they risk getting attacked by the aliens or they starve to death. Still, his easy-going manner and his ability to be cool even under stress brought about by his long career in the Alliance helped mask his concerns on his crinkly, kind face, which reassured his colonists and strengthened their morale.

They could not risk provoking the aliens or settle far away from the vault with its great but mysterious terra-forming capabilities so they finally settled in an end of a canyon, the cliffs shielding them from the great winds made abrasive by Eos' sand. They have no water, but with the vault producing oxygen and the Nexus shipping in their hydrogen refined from the gas giant it orbited, their water problem was solved by making fuel cells from both. The resulting reactions gave them enough water for their needs and so they were fine for now. That is, until the Initiative's eezo supply runs out so they were hoping, nay, praying at the vault to give them a miracle.

Sloane had lent a small group of their working shuttles for them and also sent a satellite to orbit the planet to watch the alien facilities and monitor the alien activities as they go on and off the planet. It wasn't a lot of protection but if the aliens decided to get antsy at them, the satellite could at least warn Podromos to evacuate and the shuttles can carry them off before the colony gets destroyed.

The Pathfinding team arrived in Podromos to check out their first colony, giddy like new parents over their newborn. The colony doesn't look like much, just prefab structures plopped down on the ground, but at least it's running. There's an ops center, then a science center, offices, med bay, then quarters and a greenhouse for testing agriculture viability. Scott talked with Bradley about how he'd run the colony. He was satisfied with the man's replies and thought him as capable, dependable and a quick thinker, exactly what a colony in the frontier needs. He expressed how happy he was that Podromos has such a man to look after it, which made Bradley very happy and he directed them to meet the other members of his team, starting with the overseer, Hainly Abrams.

Scott, Cora and Marcus went to find the overseer while the others went around to look at the product of their work. They found Hainly at an office with a glass window at one end to let the natural light in and with walls made of drab gray with darker gray accents and floor. There were panels and random pipes running across the walls made of rusty steel and at one side, Hainly Abrams was busy at her desk drawing the work schedules for the day and the week. The overseer has a small tanned face, with short dark hair and dark eyes. She had light make-up on, with purple eyeshadow on her lids and berry-colored lips, even though she was doing frontier work.

"Ah, Pathfinder," she greeted, standing up and putting her work away. She walked around her desk to stand in front of him and offer a hand. "I hear you're the one we have to thank for our physics-defying atmosphere processor."

"Just doing my job," Scott said, taking her hand and shaking it. She has a rather nice deep husky voice that seemed too luxurious to hear in a hardscrabble colony.

"And being humble about it," she remarked, a smiling. "Hainly Abrams, colony overseer here on Eos. Bradley's the one making the big decisions here; I only run the day to day operations. In my spare time, I'm also a writer of papers that start with "What the hell, weather?" But since we're prioritizing military defense, we may be asking that question for a while. New galaxy, New world, and a really new start. Got to keep up," she said cheerfully. She seemed passionate about her job and he hoped her enthusiasm will rub off on the colonists here. "How can I help you?"

Scott gestured around them. "I'm just checking in and see how you're doing."

"We're doing great. We've already seen changes since you triggered the vault. Nothing scary just yet. I swiped some military scanners to keep an eye on things. Best I can do."

"How do you feel about our first colony being a military outpost?"

Her nose wrinkled slightly. "Honestly, I don't like it much. It isn't what the initiative was for, isn't it? We need to understand Eos, research on remnant tech but our budget's earmarked for military research," she said and sighed. "A scientific outpost would be a better complement to our farms. We could get food produced faster with it."

"We still don't know what kind of threats we have here," Scott said. "Like the aliens just beyond the mountains. So you'll have to be patient with us military people for a little longer until we make sure the colony's safe for everyone."

She nodded, more to accept than to agree. "You're right. I don't doubt you've chosen the best for us, Pathfinder. I guess if we want something else, we'll first have to make this work, then."

"Is there something else you need?"

She hesitated. "I...have a request, Pathfinder, if you don't mind."

"Sure. What is it?"

She looked embarrassed, biting her lip. "This is...really awkward. I don't know how to put this delicately."

"it's alright. You can trust me."

She looked at him, opened her mouth then suddenly changed her mind. She smiled apologetically and shook her head. "We've already taken so much of your time Pathfinder. I'm sure I can ask Bradley to find my missing people."

"Someone's missing?" He remembered Bradley outside yelling orders to set a perimeter around the colony and watchtowers on the ridge above them, along with asking about the status of their facilities. The man looked extremely busy and so Scott took pity on him. Besides, they don't have priority missions yet. "Hainly-can I call you Hainly?" She nodded. "Hainly, I want to help."

She looked away from him and down, bowing her head slightly as she deliberated something. "Yes, some people are missing," she said at last. "And I can't pull out other workers to search for them because they're busy making this colony work. I can't go out myself since I'm still recovering."

"Recovering? Are you sick?"

"No," she said sharply. "Sorry," she apologized for her tone. "I'm not sick. I'm just recovering from major surgery. Organ transplants. I'm still getting used to having a womb and dealing with the hormones. Anyway, I was cleared to do office work but not heavy tasks like traipsing around in the desert searching for missing people."

"Why would the doctors clear you to work with that status?"

"They can't spare anyone else. A lot of people died so recovering or not, I have to go," she answered and shrugged. "Besides, you'd be amazed at the tech here at the Initiative. They really overdid themselves. It's the reason why I joined the Initiative. I've got a cushy job back at the Alliance, helping them establish colonies in the Attican Traverse as part of their expansion plan. I was great at my job, and I didn't understand why people would want to settle two million light-years away when you can do it closer to home. But the Initiative offered something better than the Alliance. They offered me the chance to be true to myself. And they kept it. I'm living like I wanted to," she said, her eyes brimming with happiness.

"You'd be willing to settle two million light-years just for that?" he asked, in awe rather than criticism.

"Some people just can't grasp the idea of being forced to live as someone else just because they were lucky not to experience it. The existential horror of it. Knowing who you are but people kept telling you you're wrong, as if they knew you better than you knew yourself." She sighed. "But I'm free of it now and I'm happy to live truly as I wished, even if it's somewhere two million light-years away from home."

She didn't need to inform them the details of the surgery, of the female reproductive organs made from her own cells and the implants that released and regulated the hormones her new organs need and the augments for her immune system which was dampened to reduce rejection. With those, no one can tell she was not born female, for she looked like one externally and internally. Only by examining her DNA will anyone know she was male once and once was called Stephen.

"Well, I'm glad you've found happiness here," Scott said and he meant it. The Initiative was craving for good news and after all the problems they've encountered since arriving here, it was gratifying to hear about someone whose wish was already fulfilled.

"So, do I," she said, beaming. "Anyway, those workers won't find themselves." She handed him a datapad where he saw a work crew with mixed members headed by someone named Jennings. "The work crew were assigned to test agriculture viability on a designated site just west of here. They did go and do it, but they keep talking about the Remnant tech. They think the Initiative's lying about how dangerous it is—that a couple of electrodes in the right place could get the Remnant to work for them instead. I dismissed it as absurd since we already have our own drones to do the manual labor. I told them to focus on their job and let other people more qualified than them to worry about it. But, it seems they're more stubborn than I thought because days later, I found one of them in the med bay and the rest missing. Remnant Observers have carved Bharti up. Before he died, I asked him where the rest was. I got nothing else, only that Jennings told them they could live like kings if they had an army of Remnant bots working and fighting for us. He took the whole work crew to help him this time."

Scott finished reading the datapad and handed it back to her. Not even a week and their colonists had broken away and doing their own thing. "Seems like this Jennings thought they could take control of a remnant."

"That's a really bad idea," Cora seconded.

Hainly nodded. "The Initiative seemed to not care much in the type of colonists they're getting," she explained. "They seem to have taken all that could pay for the trip. So it's up to us to wrangle them into the colonist we need them to be."

"Alright, Hainly. I'll look into this."

"Thank you, Pathfinder. I suggest starting at the med bay and see whether you can find anything to trace where they went."

They waved goodbye to Hainly and proceeded to the med bay at the other end of the colony. With their armor on and its environmental controls, they did not feel the sun's sharp rays bearing down on them and the sand hot beneath their feet, but they could see Eos' unbearable heat from the sizzling air above the ground as they walked. They reached the med bay and entered, the place not looking very different from Hainly's office except for the absence of desks which was replaced by beds and consoles. There were medical people in their red and white coats working around, and when they asked, they were directed by one to Bharti's corpse chilled in one of the lockers. The corpse was brought out and after being told of the cause of death, they were left alone to examine it. By analyzing the sand composition from the deceased Bharti's boot, SAM was able to deduce that they came from the monolith they passed before, southeast of Podromos in the Fairwinds Basin. They drove there by the Nomad and once they arrived, they found a broken comm array on the floor with the corpses of some of the renegade colonists near it, their skin riddled with holes. The skin around the wounds was seared.

"Here we go," Scott muttered, taking his gun out as they headed towards the bodies. At once, remnant bots appeared, as they expected. After fighting the remnant bots, Scott had SAM hack the broken comm array while the other two checked on the bodies and tagged them for extraction and burial. They listened in to the conversations the array was receiving.

"Easy money," they heard a human say. "Once the electrical charge build-up, we'll have ourselves some nice obedient remnant."

A Turian scoffed at the other end and she said, "You better be sure this time, Jennings."

"If you're that spooked, go hide behind the four giants," Jennings answered irritably. "I'm busy." With that, the comm channel closed.

"We've got to find them before they get themselves killed," Scott muttered. They went off to the Nomad and drove to the Four Giants, which were named because the four towering pillars of rock look like the mythical creatures of old. The pillars shaded a protrusion of the vault where remnant bots swarmed like bees around it. They were just in time, for Remnant bots were just about to overwhelm the work crew.

The work crew was huddled in one of the corners, screaming at the flanking bots when they arrived. At once, the Pathfinder team jumped out of the Nomad and opened fire at the bots to draw their attention away from the colonists. As Scott stripped the floating bots of their shields, Cora was charging all over the place, drawing the bots attention, turning their backs on the two, which made it easy either for Scott to snipe them or for Marcus to sneak behind them and bury an omni-blade in their backs.

"Great timing. Thanks for the assist," a human said to them after the firefight was over. He opened his helmet, revealing a clean shaved face with a bald head, dowsed with sweat and pale with subsiding fear. He smiled and offered a hand to shake, exceedingly happy at seeing another fellow human, but Scott glowered pointedly at the offered hand and crossed his arms instead.

"Looks like your experiment with the remnant didn't work out," Scott jeered.

Jennings stared at him, the smile on his lips fading, then withdrew the hand. "Hm-okay who squeaked?" he demanded, all affability gone. "Kasperek? Yeah, I bet."

"Your boss Hainly asked me to look for you."

"That damned tranny," Jennings cursed. "These remnants could plow our fields, protect us from Kett. And he-she-whatever doesn't get it. Calls it low-priority and have someone more qualified to look into it. The Nexus should have made the overseer someone who's got plenty of ideas."

"Hey," Scott called sharply. "Stop calling her that. If it wasn't for her caring enough for your dumb ass to ask someone to look for you, you'd be dead."

Jennings raised his hands up. "Fine. I'll ease up on how I call Hainly. But I'm not giving up on the Remnant. You could control them. Why shouldn't we?"

"Because I've got help from an advanced VI. And I have a team of specialists with me. Even then, we can only manage to open and close the doors and push some buttons. We can't program the Remnant bots to stop shooting at us. So drop it, Jennings; if I can't make the remnant work for me, then you can't."

Jennings stared at him then he snarled. "I can't believe this. You, the fucking pathfinder, wouldn't even try to won't let others do it."

"Because it gets many people killed, Jennings. Far too many people died because of your idea. And if you still don't believe that lives are important after all that, we can go to the vault right now, stick you in and see if your idea works."

"Pathfinder's got a point," the Turian beside Jennings said. "How many people need to get hurt before you stop this?"

Jennings stared at her then at Scott, whose face showed no sign of being merciful. "Eh, fine," he said in exasperation, throwing his hands up. "But you can't protect us all the time, Pathfinder. Out here, we need every edge we can get."

"That's for Bradley and your boss Hainly to decide," Scott said dismissively. Jennings glared at him but he stared him down until Jennings was encouraged to look away first. "Learn to follow first, Jennings, before you try to lead."

* * *

AN: Thanks for the reviews. Each one motivates me to continue writing. And as for those requesting that I update faster, I'm sorry but this is the fastest I could go. I don't have a background on either physics or military sci-fi so it takes a lot of research for me to get the sci-fi aspect right. I didn't intend to write sci-fi at first because I knew that I know nothing about science but I'm pissed enough with the game to undertake the monumental task of improving my knowledge so I could be at least decent with the genre.

Some of you are probably wondering why there's no Liam and Peebee here. Truth is, I can't stand them, that if I have to write about them, I might just kill them. To start, Liam. I have never met a character with such inanity. Sure, Jacob's boring but at least he's competent. Liam...ugh. Yes, I get the writer's intention of having someone whose ideals clash greatly with reality but really, do they have to make that character annoying by constantly lecturing his ideals on everybody else for not living up to it so he ends up judgemental and eventually, foolish? I'm still fine when he couldn't get along with everybody until his loyalty mission happened. How dare he lecture me about how to be a Pathfinder when he himself is a failed cop? Insult to injury is that you're left gaping there like a fish instead of asking him his qualifications for judging people and so let him walk away with the last word with a smug look on his face. He has an interesting arc, but the writers blew it when at the end of the mission, he either is enabled on being a judgemental prick and out of touch with reality or stubborn and arrogant beyond help and also out of touch with reality? There's no character development there because he still ends up the same way. Icing on the cake that whatever you chose, you still get the "You have achieved Liam's loyalty" message despite feeling that you should drop him off the nearest mining colony after his mission.

But my dislike of him does not compare to Peebee which I really want to yeet off the starboard side. Despite having the instant eject button for Sera, I never used it but I really wish there was one for Peebee here, because it not being present is really increasing my dislike of her. To start, before we can let her join the crew, I spotted a couple red flags about her which should have let me refuse to take her aboard. When she jumped down the hole without looking first where she's landing, refusing to go with the team and refusing to listen to me, she made an impression to me of being impulsive, does not work with the team and not obedient. All three which tells me that she is not a good fit for my team. But I am not given an option to refuse her coming aboard which is making me annoyed not with the character, but with the writers. Then upon coming aboard what was the first thing she did? She asked me to find a bauble for her and I'm like, "Excuse me, bitch, do I look like a maid to you?" And then she quarrels with my second and makes my doctor cry. And then she refuses to save the asari ark filled with people like her and **children**, because "they're old biddies"? With such an obvious sign of sociopathy, why aren't we given an option to just throw her off? And after all this, what was her reason for being so odious? "Kalinda abused me." Boooohooooo, my ex treated me badly and so I became an asshole to everyone, even those I don't have any romantic attachments with. Cringy occult thinking. And Kalinda wasn't even that bad, just your regular mustache twirling villain. I don't see her being extremely terrifying or manipulative. She's just petty and we're supposed to believe that she's bad enough to make Peebee that way? Pleeeeeaaaaasssseeeee. Peebee makes real victims of abuse look like petty assholes.

But some of you might say "But Peebee is a teenager in asari years!" Look, you may enjoy being a nanny to children but I don't, especially when you're fighting for every scrap of food. I'd much prefer they were kept at home under supervision. And isn't it weird that you have someone who acts so sexual despite being a child? Jailbait alert.


	14. Chapter 14

They were packing up when his attention was caught by something in the dunes. Perhaps it was because of the dry brush swaying softly in the breeze and beside it, an odd-looking branch. Scott squinted at it. Sometimes the planet liked to play tricks on them with its mirages. He stood there, squinting for a while longer, when he realized that what he was seeing was not a mirage; there really was a foot buried in the sand.

He went to the spot and squatted over the thing. A dark, desiccated foot was poking out from the ground. He looked at the bowed shins and the hoof-like foot with two cloven toes and said, "Guys, I found a dead salarian here."

Cora and Marcus stopped tending to the injured work crew and went over to see what he found. "One of ours?" Cora asked, peering down at the foot.

Scott shrugged. "Let's find out."

They dug out the sand until they uncovered the body completely. It was intact, without animal or insect bites, but mummified. It was wearing a soiled, thin silver body suit of the Initiative. Scott opened his scanner and scanned the corpse, which told him that the body was male, middle-aged and dead by gunshots.

They called Jennings over who was dejectedly packing up his things. When he was near enough, he asked, "This one of yours?", nodding at the body.

Jennings walked closer to the body and peered down at it. After a few minutes, he shook his head. "I don't know all the salarians back at the colony but I'm sure they never wore that uniform there," he said, pointing at the corpse's thin silvery suit with the Initiative's logo at the breast. "Besides, the face's all black and…" he made a motion of his wrist where the skin on the corpse's face were drawn taut, showing the points of hardened cartilage and the lips pulled back, revealing snarling teeth.

"Analysis complete," SAM interrupted. "From the scans of his teeth, I can say with 90% certainty that this is Judern Silben, Initiative Founder."

They all gaped at each other then at the body in front of them.

"Well, shit," Scott said, speaking for them all.

* * *

They brought the body to the Nexus which had more advanced facilities than the colony and turned it over to Sloane. She had gone with it to the medical bay while they were told to wait in her office.

Her office was just at the opposite of Kesh's office at the operations deck, below the platform where Addison was coordinating the daily tasks of the station. The last time they entered it, it was merely a room with stacked crates at the back. Now, there was a second level, with a reception desk beside the door at the ground floor and a coffee table on an elevated platform beside it, then a conference room with a round table at the landing before it twisted again and led to Sloane's enclosed office. They were directed by the receptionist to that room and were asked to sit on the chairs and provided refreshments as they waited for her.

Their mugs were empty and the biscuits were long gone before the door opened again and finally, Sloane arrived. "At last. We're getting somewhere," she announced when the door closed behind her.

"What did you find?" Scott asked as Sloane walked around them to sit behind her desk. She sank into the soft cushion with a sigh.

"They can't tell when exactly Silbern died but based on their disappearance, about a year ago. Two shots from the front, one to the head then chest. Through and through, so no bullets. No signs of burns around the wounds either, so not lasers. Mass accelerated rounds, semi-large so a pistol or a rifle. He was also wearing armor based on the debris embedded around the wound. Did you find his things with him down there?"

"No. We just found him with the bodysuit. We didn't find his armor anywhere. But we're not sure if anything else is buried since we didn't sift the sand around the body," Scott said.

Sloane put a hand at the back of her neck and rubbed it. "That's all for now. I guess I'll be going down at Eos to investigate, then. Did you follow procedure?"

"I had the site cordoned off and a watch set over it," Scott said evenly, careful not to let his resentment at being treated like a child bleed over his tone. He hasn't forgotten yet what she said during the party after the activation of the vault.

She just nodded, not showing any awareness over her tone. Or maybe she did intended to treat him like an idiot. "Any sign of Tempest One?"

"Tempest what?"

"Tempest One," she repeated. "It's the first Tempest. Yours is the second until we ran out of materials to build the others. The Tempest series was supposed to serve as the pathfinder's ships but the founders borrowed it when they set out since the arks were delayed."

"No. We didn't see any ship there," he answered softly because his mind was on something else. Seriously? They're building cutting edge ships only now? "I'm sorry. You're building ships now when we could have used it earlier?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly at him. "The Nexus and the arks didn't need to have a heavy escort since they can outrun and outlast anything we know of. So, they're just equipped with light armaments to reduce weight and consumption of our eezo supply. Besides, Jien Garson didn't want leaks of her inventions going out. If they were pre-built, there'd be a lot of people knowing about it. You'd be dead sure the whole galaxy would know about it before those ships are even completed."

"Fine," he said, dropping the point. The Tempest was a stealth ship and built for observation, not a straight up fight. It would do well for recon but just strapping some guns with its light armor won't turn it into the warship they need.

"It'd be difficult to pick up the trail since it happened so long ago," Sloane continued. "But I'll inform you as soon as I find anything else down there. So, any other questions?"

"Any word on the arks?"

She shook her head. "Nothing yet. Our QECs were damaged beyond repair. As for contacting the Milky Way, we tried to use the QEC at Hyperion but apparently, it wasn't working."

Scot went still. "How do you mean it isn't working?"

Sloane put up her hands. "We're not receiving any answers. Either no one is looking after it or the QEC there was destroyed."

Scott frowned. "Not answering? Do you think they forgot about us after all those years travelling through dark space?"

"Maybe. It's crazy what people can get up to after a few hundred years," she answered and shrugged. "We'll have to wait for the techs to solve that problem. But for now, we'll just have to act as if we're alone out here. Anything else?"

Scott looked at his companions who shook their head. "I guess that's all for now," he said, and they rose out of their seats.

"Inform me if you find something like this again during your travels," she said. Then her brow furrowed, and she pinched her lips hard while she gave a glare at her desk that can melt steel. Scott was about to turn away when she suddenly spat out, "You've done well finding Silben."

Scot's jaw nearly dropped. "Er…thank you?" he said in surprise. She said it stiffly, but still she said it.

She nodded, then went looking from extremely embarrassed to annoyed and shooed them away with a sharp wave of her hand. "Now get out of my sight," she said and turned sideways to face the wall.

When the door closed behind them and they started walking down the stairs, Marcus chuckled. "Did I hear that right? Did she just…compliment you?" he said, glancing back at the office.

"I know, right? The cranky bitch played nice today," Scott said, glancing back too.

"Careful now. At this rate, you just might end up as best friends," Marcus teased him.

Scott turned forward and shuddered. "Please don't. I'm gonna have nightmares about that."

* * *

They rode the Tempest back to Eos. Though they had the navigational data of the mysterious planet given by the vault, they saw that they could not pursue that lead, because Bradley requested their help. They needed to erect a listening tower at the cliffs overlooking the outpost and a watch station. Someone with a sniper rifle on that ridge and with a good aim can pick off the people below like fish in the barrel.

They had a long day, so Scott went for a shower and a rest in his cabin. Free of the grime from work with his muscles relaxed from the long, hot shower, he spread himself on his luxurious bed and, as the stars passed overhead in the fake ceiling, he reviewed the events that transpired today.

The discovery of the salarian founder made him remember about Ben. He loved his uncle dearly, but he wouldn't join him during mealtimes. Ben's taste was too weird for his liking. For example, he took afternoon tea. He would have joined him gladly, since he doesn't have the stomach for coffee, but it wasn't tea and crumpets. It's tea and squid. Or whatever monstrosity they could fish from the ocean. That was the problem. Ben loved his native food which was not to everyone's taste.

Unlike Western cuisine where ingredients are processed extensively with techniques such as braising and poaching, Japanese cuisine is all about natural taste and the fresher, the better. And sometimes it's so fresh because it's just off the limb.

He remembered the time when he was a dumb kid and they nearly had a falling out over it. On Ben's 50th birthday, they went to his favorite Japanese Restaurant of course. The place had a modern design but still has that characteristic minimalist aesthetic. Lots of free space but elegant despite the sparseness of decor. They were seated over a low table on cushions with the floor underlit beneath them. The chairs and tables were made of the expensive black wood that shine like it was lacquered. The walls were of soft orange with a texture of paper and yellow accents on the dividers and liquor display behind the bar and as illumination in the dim room.

Ben ordered some sort of special beef, among others, with a hefty price tag equivalent to the price of a Ruzaad shotgun, while the Ryders ordered barbecues and chicken teriyaki.

The food arrived and he looked over to what Ben had ordered to see the food that cost an arm and a limb.

It was slices of beef fanned on a slab of porcelain plate, with sauce poured artfully on one side.

His jaw fell in shock. Not only was it served plainly, it's also raw. It was just glistening there, shiny with the white fat marbling on the bright red flesh.

Then he remembered they ordered a barbecue so as his parents and Ben talked, he took the initiative to man the grill, happily adding Ben's pile to the sizzling meats. As soon as he was done, he transferred it back to the plate and presented it to his adopted Uncle.

"Happy Birthday, Ben," he said, presenting it with a flourish.

Ben broke away from their discussion to stare at what Scott had done to his food. He looked at it as if Scott had just served him his firstborn, a look mirrored by the waiter across from them, who turned to his fellow waiters until the chef came out and gaped at them. All of them looked about to eat their hats.

"Is there a problem?" Scott asked, divining that something was wrong.

Ben tore his eyes away from it to stare at Scott with those woeful eyes. He blinked several times before his face returned to being unreadable. This made Scott feel bad. But Ben picked up his chopsticks and sampled one of it. "It's quite good," he pronounced.

Scott beamed and he went back to manning the grill, not a little perturbed by the appearance of Ben's British accent.

Alex also picked one up and sampled it. "This is good," he pronounced. He smacked his slips. "It's fatty, though. I don't know why this cost so much. Next time, Hide, maybe you should choose a steakhouse that serves good meat," he said, calling his friend by his middle name, Hideaki, but shortened.

Ben inclined his head slightly. "I'll bear that in mind," he murmured, his accent stronger than ever.

"Now, let's just enjoy the meal, shall we?" Ellen said with the same British accent, her eyes twinkling with merriment. "They do care about you, Ben," she said, shooting Ben with a sympathetic glance for her well-meaning but not very perceptive men. "Too much, it seems."

Alec and Scott looked at her perplexed, but it was only later that Scott understood when Sara explained to him that he was not supposed to grill the meat.

"You're supposes to eat it sliced thin and raw," she hissed when they got home.

He looked at her with horror. "Raw?"

"It's Ben so.." she shrugged and left him there stewing in horror, both at what he'd just avoided eating and what he'd done to his uncle.

He did make up for it afterwards and Ben had told him not to mind it too much (in a neutral accent). And then the incident, instead of just being an embarrassing memory, became a secret joke between them. Whenever Scott had a fight with someone, he would refer to it as "having a beef" and Ben would crack up and they would start laughing.

* * *

"I can't stop thinking about what you did with the Advent. To be honest, that's kind of a dick move," Marcus commented as he, Scott and Cora were installing the seismic hammer in the plain beyond Podromos to solve the water problems of the outpost. The planet had finally cooled enough to tolerable levels but there's still no rain. There's a lot of shakes happening though. Small ones, not strong enough to damage their buildings but it did make the colonists reconsider about settling permanently, what with the aliens beyond the mountains still sitting pretty in their pretty little dome.

Then the colony found there's an aquifer deep in the soil. Whether they have the vault to thank for it, they didn't know but they were grateful. They were also fast to seize it while it's there.

"You side with those opportunistic free-loaders?" Scott scoffed. The Advent were a group of human exiles who one day decided to settle on the now viable Eos and compete with Podromos on the use of its resources. They also had the gall to declare independence from the Nexus, expressing their distaste at working with other aliens. They couldn't make them go back to the fold by force because well, they're the good guys. Besides, everyone's busy surviving that they don't have the time, money and effort to start a war on people doing the same thing while the aliens over the mountains loom over them all. Curiously, the aliens were not attacking when they could have wiped them out easily. They were hanging in the vicinity of the vault, hidden, but never entering the remnant structure. They only acted when one of them wandered into their territory so for now, they steered clear of the vault, despite their scientists wishing to get in it and study the outer chambers as the central chamber has sealed and refused to open even for SAM.

Though they thought that strange, they were grateful for it and also smart enough to realize not to start a fuss that can attract them.

"The way I see it, everyone wins," Scott grumbled as he fiddled with the third seismic hammer with his omni-tool. "We get the water, they get the gas. Besides, did they really expect that we would allow them to get the water so we can tap the gas for them to mine and trade it to us?"

"If you put it that way…"

Scott tapped on more buttons before continuing, "If I was a dick, that's because they were a dick. I just out-dicked them."

Marcus put up his hands. "Chill. I get you."

They stood back and watched as the seismic hammer did its job. It buzzed loudly as it dug into the hard-packed earth, sending dust around them rising into the air. The sun overhead beat hard on them, taxing their suit's environmental controls but they could do nothing but stand patiently, as the flora of the planet offered little protection for weary travelers. They can stop hoping for shade in Eos, as the trees either look like fan corals or else like blue broccoli with an uneven head. And that's just before they activated the vault and changed the planet irrevocably. Now, the trees looked like the faded and desiccated versions of themselves.

"Show's over, I think. Let's go home; it's been a long day," Scott said, his mind already on a cold shower back at the Tempest when the ground started shaking, every tremor growing powerful.

"What's happening?" Marcus said, as he fell on his knees and spread out his arms over the shaking ground.

"I don't know!" Scott answered, dropping also to his knees. "SAM, any ideas?"

It seems they didn't need SAM, as their answer burst out of the ground about fifty meters to their right. It kept going, going, going into the sky because it's a giant…..robot…worm.

Their mouths dropped open as they looked at it, the segmented arms running up, up, up into a humongous head with pincers, as dark as Remnant tech and its lights glowing brightly and angrily. It turned its head this way and that, showing them its fiery maw with sharp teeth whirring around, looking like a mouth of a serrated worm. Staring at it, they forgot the shaking ground and the infernal scream it's putting out. As it screamed again, they started moving.

"What the fuck did you do, Ryder?" Marcus hissed as they unstrapped their weapons and ran on jelly legs to a bunch of rocks for cover.

"What the fuck do you think, Zola? You were right there!" Scott hissed back as he dropped behind a rock.

"Damn it! Can you two stop playing around and focus on that thing right there!" Cora shouted as her biotics charged up her arms.

"Now what?" Marcus asked, training his sights on the creature.

They watched it wiggle from side to side, mud dripping from its head as the ground bubbled at its base. The fifty foot behemoth towered over the landscape, screeching as it turned its head around, mud plopping and splashing around it, as if searching for….something. Or someone. Some people. Some very dumb people.

"Nobody move," Scott whispered as they stared at it, his mouth dry as they realized what it was doing, hoping that the creature saw them merely as odd-looking rocks. Just part of the landscape...

It swung its great head around, sweeping over the land, its massive shadow falling over them once, until it seemed it did not find what it was looking for so it turned towards…Podromos.

The giant arc at the middle of the colony was peeking out of the cliff and gleaming in the mid-day sun, catching the worm's attention.

They turned towards the colony too and gaped when the worm started moving in that direction. "Shit! That stupid worm's decided for us! We need to stop it before it reaches the colony!" Scott yelled and they ran towards the Nomad, stumbling and tripping due to the ground being shaken by the worm's tread.

"Not as stupid as the human who woke it," Marcus fired back as he pulled himself onto the driver's seat while the others slid onto the Nomad.

"Rag on me later. If we live through this," Scott said at the back as Marcus stepped on the accelerator. The Nomad screeched and shot off across the plain, leaping over gullies, boulders and wildlife until it ran alongside the beast. Scott opened the door. "Cora, can I have the missile?"

"In a minute!" she answered as she rummaged at the back. She finally drew out a Cobra missile and handed the disk missile off to Scott. Scott put it above his omnitool, where it programmed its trajectory. He aimed it and fired.

The beast screeched as the missile hit one of its legs. It was still going for the outpost, but it was slowing down, its arc becoming higher and higher. Then it dove through the ground, shaking it, rocks and dust plumes rising high into the air and it disappeared.

"Think we scared it off?" Scott asked the two as the Nomad circled around to the hole the creature made.

Then suddenly, the ground shook again and then the creature burst to where they were moments before. They screamed as the Nomad bounced from the heaving ground and Marcus pushed the Nomad hard as boulders flew around them.

"4 o'clock! 4 o'clock!" Scott yelled, looking at the screen where the camera at the back was recording their tail. The Nomad turned left and Scott ducked instinctively as a boulder bounced on their left.

The ground around them started cracking and rising, which made the Nomad bounce as it traveled over them.

Scoot looked back and watched in dismay as a spray of rocks was about to drop on them. He yelled but a biotic shield appeared overhead and the rocks bounced away.

"Thanks, Cora," Scott said, his voice shaking. "SAM, can you track it?"

"Yes. It seems it should appear about sixty meters ahead of you," SAM droned.

"Right!" Marcus said and swerved hard to the right. The creature burst from the ground a moment later.

"Pathfinder, I have scanned the creature and identified several structural weaknesses. Disabling them would separate the links of its body. Your missiles would be sufficient for the task," SAM said.

"Thanks, SAM. Marcus?"

"On it," Marcus said and drove closer to the creature, circling it. It watched them and tried to strike down with its maw but it was too slow going down and getting up. At least it did not hide back into the ground.

Scott unloaded several missiles along with Cora. With SAM's targeting, they blasted away the nodes keeping the creature intact as Marcus drove the Nomad and they wove in and out and around it. The creature screamed and with one final explosion, it fell apart.

As its parts fell around them, the Nomad raced away from it as fast as possible. An arm fell in front of them, draping across their way and corralling them, so the Nomad had to swerve and follow alongside it, dust obscuring their way, enveloping them. Then a shadow appeared on their way, its outline the same as the creatures' head and getting longer.

"We're not going to make it!" Marcus said. But Cora yelled, "Drive straight ahead and drop it when I told you to!" She stretched her hand out the Nomad quickly unleashed a singularity before them. She ducked her hand back in quickly and said, "Now!"

Marcus boosted the Nomad to jump, just in time to pass through the singularity. The Vehicle floated up, but Marcus boosted it again so it was flipping over and up the boulder and moving faster. It was just in time, as the head crashed behind them. It flipped in the air until the biotic field disappeared and Marcus timed it to crash down onto the ground, wheels down. The tires screeched as the Nomad drove off again, parts of the creature's arms falling behind round them and the massive head bouncing. The head then exploded which sent debris towards them.

With parts chasing them, Marcus accelerated.

The Nomad swerved from side to side, avoiding the burning metal flying behind them. Then a clump suddenly buried in front of them, prompting Marcus to turn the wheel-right? Unbelievably, it made the Nomad swirl left, tires screeching, its back almost clipping the blockage, until it faced it again and made a full stop. Inside, they stared at the metal inches from the Nomad's nose as the other parts tumbled on beyond them.

When it finally stopped, Scott opened the door and climbed down the Nomad. He wobbled for a few steps forward then collapsed drunkenly on the side of their car. Cora and Marcus climbed out and joined him at watching the smoking remains of the creature.

They stood looking at it for a few more minutes, then Marcus said, "From this day onward, I'm going to call the 'doing something simple and then out pops a giant creature' a 'seismic hammer'."

As they stood looking at the smoking remains, far away a light twinkled. A light, reflected from a monocle.


	15. Chapter 15

They were driving around the central lake after putting up beacons, satellite towers and investigating missing supplies apparently carried away by Eos' surviving giant green beetles when they suddenly heard gunfire behind them. SAM informed them of the alien's dropship nearby and that the aliens seem to be attacking somebody. Marcus turned the Nomad around to see if it was one of their people and parked close to pillars of rocks, where they went into position to observe.

Scott perched his Valkyrie on a rock and peered through his scope to see the fighting before them. There was a lone figure running away from a group of the aliens they knew. He focused on the one, who seemed to have the same body type as the aliens in pursuit. However, it had a different colored armor with a flowing…cape?

He adjusted his scope to see closer when the figure…vanished.

He drew back, blinked then returned to watch, looking for it until he saw it appear behind one of the aliens. Its friends opened their mouths to screech and then they bounded after it, guns spraying, as their friend fell with green blood spurting from its back.

"I detect no Milky way races present. However, I observe that the configuration of the hands of the new alien correspond to the marks on the console back at the vault," SAM said, analyzing the scene through Scott's eyes.

Marcus looked up from his Revenant's scope. "You mean down there's our mysterious alien?"

"That is probable."

Scott looked at Marcus and Cora. "Should we?" Cora asked, titling her head at it.

Scott handed Marcus his Black Widow and said to Cora, "Let's go."

They went back in the Nomad and raced to the scene of the fighting. The dropship turned towards them and fired missiles. The Nomad swerved and swayed, evading it, until it was close enough and Scott opened his door and aimed the Cobra missile at it. The disk spun towards the dropship where it emitted a cloud over itself as it veered away but the missile curved, following it. It crashed into its underbelly, tearing it in half. The dropship exploded, its parts raining down.

The Nomad circled back, and they parked it near to the lake's edge and disembarked. They started shooting at the aliens, using the Nomad as cover. The aliens turned to shoot at them but the unknown one suddenly appeared and buried its knife on its back. Then it threw a handful of grenades at the others and leaped away as the ground burst in explosions.

Scot and Cora helped the new alien overcome its attackers. Cora went ahead and charged, sending one of them flying as she turned her Disciple shotgun to the face of the other and fired. Scott peeked on the side of the Nomad, raised his rifle, aimed at the alien in the air and fired. The alien dropped and did not stand again. The last one tried to run but was shot dead by the three of them. With their last enemy dead, they turned their weapons at each other.

"Whoa!" Scott said, raising his weapon as the alien pointed it at him. "We meant no harm."

The alien looked at him with its pair of eyes, one covered with visor much like a monocle. It was bipedal and similar to the body type of human males, with wide shoulders & narrow hips. Its head was covered with a reinforced dome, with sort of cowl like a cobra's ran from its head, down to the sides of its neck and ending inside its chest. Its legs were slightly splayed and the calves bent back.

It was also very colorful. Its skin was rubbery looking and translucent, similar to salarian skin but colored light purple with speckles of light. It was wearing a sort of blue silk caftan over its dark blue armor, softly floating and shimmering every time the wind passed through it. Its face reminded them of a cat: eyes a brilliant sky blue with slits for pupils but with a dark sclera and a broad straight, feline nose.

And it's staring at them like it caught a mouse.

Scott glanced at Cora, who answered with a tiny nod. Then he turned his gun so he held on it by its middle then slowly held it out. The alien shifted uncomfortably, glancing at him and Cora until Scott dropped his gun.

He wasn't sure if the alien might interpret it as a challenge, but he hoped it wouldn't. He hoped that the alien will interpret it as a sign of peace.

The alien looked at the gun at his feet, sniffed at it then turned its attention back to them. Then it spoke. "What…are you doing?" it asked.

Scott's jaw dropped inside his helmet. "You…speak our language?"

"My translator does," it said, its voice sounding like a deep purr. "We have met your people before."

Scott looked at Cora, who looked as baffled as he was. Scott made as if to scratch his head, but remembered he's wearing a helmet and so put it down quickly. "Then you understand that we meant you no harm."

"No."

Scott blinked at the alien. Surely if they met their people before, then they would understand that dropping their weapon or holding their empty hands up were signs of non-aggression. "I…am not sure I understand."

"Your people came here without warning, then go from world to world taking what you can. So I do not believe you when you say you meant us no harm."

Scott shut his eyes and mentally cursed the exiles. It was very likely now that their first contact had not gone peacefully. "I can explain," he said, looking earnestly at the alien. "The people you've met? They're not us. They're different."

"Are they?" It examined them again, its eye glinting behind the monocle.

"Yes. Those were desperate people and some bad ones. While we came in peace and are willing to work with you."

The alien did not answer and still looked suspiciously at them, so Scott changed tack. "Are you alone? Where are your people?"

The alien hesitated. "I am not from here."

"From another world then?"

"Yes."

"Then can you take us to your leader and let them see us for themselves? So we can explain that we really meant no harm?"

"Yes. But if you do, you must come without your people knowing," it said, waving its gun at the direction of Podromos then at the sky. It knew about the Nexus.

Cora turned to Scott. "Scott…." she warned, the rest of her sentence completed with a look.

Scott acknowledged it and turned back to the alien. "There must be some way we can talk about this. If we're gone, they'll worry. Can we leave something to tell them we're gone for a while we're gone so they won't worry at least?"

"No. if your intentions are pure, then you will do it. If not, then there is nothing more to talk about and I leave," it insisted.

Scott stared at him, looking to see if it would back down. It didn't.

"If you really came in peace, then you will come," it said with a finality.

Scott looked at him some more and said, "Fine." He opened his channel. "Marcus, you can come out now," he said, where Marcus popped out from his hiding place, ready to provide them cover should the alien prove hostile. "We need to go on a detour."

The alien lowered its gun. "My name is Jaal Ama Derav and I am of the Angara."

"I'm Scott Ryder, a human. This is Marcus Zola and Cora Harper," he said, nodding at the two.

The alien looked over them all. It was hard to tell what it thought as it examined them, its pupils shrunk to slits and its body still, as its caftan fluttered softly behind it. Then it said, "Follow me then, humans," and turned his back to walk away.

Scott wondered whether it was being naive or it decided to trust them when it turned its back to them. But they followed behind it. "Where are we going?" Scott asked as he jogged to be alongside it, matching its lunging gait.

"To the place of our people. Aya."

* * *

The alien led them to its shuttle. Along the way, it clarified that he was male and the aliens they were fighting against were called Kett. Scott asked what Kett meant and Jaal answered that they don't know; the Kett called themselves that when they met their people and never explained it.

They arrived at a plateau above the lake and where his shuttle, a black and white thing with a rounded body, small fins at the back and thrusters at the front, was hidden. Scott looked below them and saw the place was a good vantage point for observing them. He could see miles and miles of the land before them and to his right, the opening to Podromos. Jaal called his attention to them and said they should board, but Scott argued with him that he needed his whole team and ship. They argued back and forth until finally, the alien agreed to lead his ship to Aya.

They left Eos and sailed towards the Onaon system, thinking with a pang that they'd be passing the Nexus without so much as a greeting. When Kallo announced that they're just within one light year of the system, Cora quietly sidled near Scott.

"I don't feel good about this, Scott," Cora said to him. "Are you sure we're not walking into a trap?"

"We did aim to have peaceful contact with possible natives here," Scott answered. "These are their terms."

"I know, but-is this important enough to risk our safety?"

"If we don't follow him, then we might have made enemies which we can't afford to have since we don't know much about here. And besides, they may be the ones who left traces back at the Eos vault. Maybe they were the builders and they can tell us more about it?"

Cora just shook her head, her fringe sweeping across her nose. "I don't know," she confessed and sighed. "But we're here now so I guess we should prepare for anything that might happen."

"Good idea."

"Uh, Ryder?" Kallo interrupted, a little panic stricken. "Further on is the…Shroud."

Scott stared at the screen where the twinkling, distorted star field typical of the Shroud's presence greeted them. "Suvi, open a channel to the alien shuttle," he instructed sharply.

She tapped on her console and said, "Channel opened."

"Yes?" Jaal answered.

Scott rounded on him. "You've led us into a trap!"

"No. Our destination is beyond that cloud," Jaal answered calmly.

"We can't get through that!"

There was a pause. "You…can't?" he asked, surprised. "Then how did you get here then?"

"Long story but our ships didn't arrive here intact. Look, I don't know what tech you have, but ours cannot get through that."

There was another pause. "Then we have a problem. Wait for my instructions," he said and closed the line.

"Yellow alert," Scott said, and the klaxon blared. His crew was scrambling behind the bridge and Marcus later reported that all stations were ready.

They waited for minutes in tense silence. Finally, Jaal's shuttle hailed them and his face appeared on the screen. "I will ask an escort to come here shortly and help you pass. We'll have to surround you with our ships so we can continue on to Aya."

"Surround us?" Scott asked, fear tickling in. "And that will help us pass through it? How?"

"You will see," Jaal said simply and confidently.

Scott fell silent, still eyeing the screen with suspicion.

"This isn't what we talked about, Jaal," he said.

"Your inability to move through the Shroud isn't what we expected."

Scott went silent as he weighed his proposal. He started to doubt the whole thing. It seemed Jaal did not tell them everything and he regretted going with him, now that he said more of his people will be coming. The reason why he insisted on taking his own ship was that if worse came to worst, they wouldn't have to depend on working on an alien ship to escape. But his precaution was now rendered deficient since they will be outnumbered if it led to a fight. "Alright, Jaal," he decided, chewing his lip as he thought about what they could do if this becomes a worst-case scenario.

Jaal closed the line then the screen showed his shuttle move forward to the Shroud. They felt a brief sense of alarm as it shot through it then awe when they saw a field surround it, showing normal starlight around the shuttle. Then the Shroud enveloped it completely, until the space returned to its distorted form once more.

"Is he…dead?" Suvi whispered as they stared at the empty screen. They waited for Jaal to appear again and as the time lengthened with no shuttle in sight, Scott wondered if the alien was just playing a game with them.

Spots appeared on the Shroud, where the light passing through was not distorted and showing clearly the other end of the galaxy. Then it vanished then Kallo informed them that unknown ships had decloaked and surrounded them. One of them hailed the Tempest.

"Tove jagalesh do!" a voice harshly demanded which Kallo said was from the foremost frigate, its outline roughly that of a whale shark. Their hulls were painted black and white, but the colors were shimmering as if about to transform into other colors.

"We're visitors from another galaxy. Our intentions are peaceful," Scott answered. He heard Jaal explain something in their language.

There was a brief silence before they heard the voice again. Jaal said that they should prepare to be surrounded as agreed.

The screen showed the frigates coming closer to them, then aligning alongside them. The ships were placed with one each at their top, bottom and sides roughly abreast of them then another group at the tail end but placed diametrically at the sides. The frigate at the topmost of the formation barked an instruction to move forward and keep up with their speed. Kallo glanced worriedly at Scott, who nodded. The salarian muttered something under his breath as he tapped on his console. The group moved forward slowly, until the whole screen was filled with the distorted star field, the only sign showing the presence of the Shroud.

As the foremost ship went nearer to it, they instinctively leaned back, expecting immediate disintegration as it approached, only to find it parting before them. The alien ship seemed to generate a negating field around it which overlapped with the next ship and so on. The overlapping fields also covered the Tempest, so not a particle of the Shroud (or whatever it was made of) had touched their ship.

After clearing the Shroud, the ships spread out from the Tempest. They had just enough time for the wonder to subside, when they beheld before them a dark gray colored planet with angry red streaks like spiderwebs running on it. When they were close enough to see the surface, they found that the red streaks were lava flows and realized that the planet was highly volcanic. Their shuttle flew around it, getting closer to a moon where ships like little bees swarmed. They thought this was Aya, until their escort passed it by. They were close enough to see artificial structures on the surface, which Scott guessed to be defense installations with the moon serving as the planet's defense system.

He turned his attention back to the planet. He was puzzled as to why they chose an apparently barren and volatile planet as their place, until they arrived at the light side of the planet and saw a little bubble shining on one side, like a mole ringed by ring of mountains and partly hidden by low hanging clouds. They followed their escorts as it descended to this patch. When they broke through the dark clouds, they saw a giant… tree?

Trees, actually, they saw as they moved closer. A forest covered by a shield bubble. The bubble then formed an opening on the side for them to pass through. Jaal was on the line again and advised them to drop lower and in line with the opening. They went inside and passed through the narrow pillars generating the bubble. There was another bubble they had to pass through and as they came nearer to the city, they saw it was not trees at all, but towers in the shape of trees. The towers were cylindrical unlike the rectangular shapes their skyscrapers had or Illium's sharp and narrow ones. There were interweaving branches that were actually highways, canopies that were roofs like overturned leaves on roads that looked like flat branches which were held up with supports underneath or else suspended with arches and wires to the main beam.

The city was dappled, with shade and light playing on its interior. There was light running on the sides while the towers in shadow glowed soft cool colors and towers in sunlight glowed a pearly white with traces of color underneath. There were also brightly colored holograms hanging in the air showing what looked like advertisements with faces or figures of Angara moving on its surface while an alien language scrolled.

It was breathtaking.

"It's… beautiful," Scott said in awe, forgetting the fear they felt at being taken to an unknown place. Suvi and Kallo agreed silently, looking just as enthralled as he as they looked at the screen.

Jaal went online again and told them to set down to a landing pads atop one of the towers before the inner entrance.

Scott cast one last look at the city, then turned to go. "Here's to hoping they are friendly," he said with a shrug to those assembled at the research station before the cargo bay. He was about to pass through the door when Vetra suddenly blocked his way. "Please, you're not really going out there on your own," she said, arms crossed. Cora followed and said from behind, "We can't risk our Pathfinder alone out there. What if something happens to you? What will happen to our mission then?" She shook her head then held out her hands in front of her, as if to block him. "It's too risky. No, it's better if anyone goes on your behalf. I'm willing to do that."

"Thanks for your concern, Cora but this is our first interaction with the Angara. We shouldn't act as if we're not treating them seriously. Besides, Jaal said I can take two people with me so if it turns ass up, we could at least fight our way out," Scott said.

"Who are you going to take?" Cora asked.

"I'm taking Marcus and Vetra. It's best if you stay, Cora, in case something happens. If it does, I trust you to act as the situation demands."

She searched his face and saw his conviction there, so she nodded. Marcus and Vetra joined him as he went down onto the loading area. Gil poked his head from the engineering doors and as they passed and he whispered, "Be careful Ryder. We don't know what they will do."


	16. Chapter 16

"The atmosphere is breathable for you. You will not need your helmets," Jaal said on their line, as Scott and his team waited before the cargo bay doors. Marcus and Vetra looked at Scott. He acknowledged it and asked SAM for confirmation.

"He is correct," SAM concurred, feeding Kallo and Suvi's findings from the Tempest sensors through their omni-tools. "The atmosphere is not poisonous to races present. Though there is a lower oxygen content in the air, it is enough to remain conscious. I will adjust the rate of your oxygen absorption as soon as you disembark."

"What about Marcus and Vetra?" Scott asked.

"I think I'm going to be fine," Marcus said, reading SAM's readouts from his omnitool. "It's just like setting down on high altitude places."

"Same here," Vetra said, looking at the same readouts. "It's like I'm back on Palaven."

Scott looked up at Gil on the railing above them and nodded. He nodded back and opened the cargo bay doors. They walked out of the Tempest and into the bright sunshine. Scott squinted at the bright light, and his eyes adjusted, he saw Jaal's people meet them on the walkway, armed and armored.

One of them in a dark colored armor stepped forward. "Tas gooj yobe jenvad," he asked. His friend joined him and ran a scan on them. "Tos global tam yehal?"

Jaal had, by this time joined them, coming from his shuttle parked beside the Tempest, and answered his compatriots in their own language. Then he turned to them. "Your ship will not be able to fit into the city. You will have to go in mine."

He was right; beyond were interlocking roads and pipes that would severely limit the Tempest' maneuverability. Besides, if they were to escape, The Tempest would have to be someplace open, not in a place with a lot of obstacles. No; it is better for it to stay here just outside the city limits just in case.

So they transferred to Jaal's shuttle, the other Angara looking over to them to see that they obeyed, before going into their own shuttles.

The inside of the shuttle was large, able to hold all of the Tempest crew. There were two rows of seats back to back. The wall at one hand held a locker and at the other end was a door to the cockpit. Scott wondered why Jaal had a shuttle so roomy when he was just by himself then forgot about that when some of their escorts went in with them, sitting beside them or else joining Jaal at the cockpit. When they're ready, Jaal steered the shuttle off the landing pad and through the city.

They passed on the side of some of the towers. Through the windows, Scott saw on the sides of the towers were wide balconies with Angara walking by with bags or eating in the open-air sections of restaurants, shaded by blue or green wavy roofs, their attention absorbed with their companions in front of them or else turning their heads to stare at their procession with idle curiosity. Through the glass side of the towers, he saw compartments with people moving in it, with tables and chairs and screens in front of their desks. They were working in offices apparently. He then guessed that the "bark" of the tree tower was actually sets of apartments curving around it.

Connecting the towers were train lines which passed through nodes on the buildings in intervals. The lines snake through the city, winding up or down. Inside the compartments, he could see Angara jostling for space, just as hassled and tired as anyone who lived in a city. Scott saw enough of cities like Illium and was pleasantly surprised to see that this city was free of the annoying and clogging presence of cars flying everywhere like a cloud of gnats, ruining the scenery. It seemed the Angara prefer public transportation, using shuttles only for rare cases like the present.

Curiously, he did not find any children about. Try as he might, all he can see were adults.

He craned his neck forward to see more. His attention was caught by something moving near the bottom, at the farthest sides of the towers, facing out. The shuttles weaved through the towers and moved them closer to the outermost ones, where he saw acres of netting standing upright outside the towers with vines on top, the hedges spaced evenly and growing shorter the farther it is from the city. Angara were tending the plants, suspended in midair with wires or holding on to the net behind, where the plants were attached. He came to realize they were gardening, and he was actually looking at a farm. A vertical farm.

Finally, they reached a landing pad at center of the city on a tower smaller than those surrounding it. Five pads stretched out from the center like petals of a flower. There were walkways connecting them to the center supported by arches beneath it. At the tip of the tower was a half open dome made of green glass with tiny shapes moving under it. As they went closer, he saw it was a gathering and by the faces turned to their procession, he realized the crowd was expecting them.

Some of the shuttles landed on each of the pads while the rest hovered above. Theirs landed on the pad directly facing the center. The door opened and they disembarked, their escorts in front and behind them. With motions of their escorts' guns, they were urged to walk towards the center of the tower before the eyes of the crowd.

More people came forth from the stairs winding up onto the top level to join the crowd and stare at them. Scott glanced at them, taking in their varying color, ranging from pale green to the darkest purple. There were some people sharing the same shade of Jaal, but their markings and speckles were different. Some sported tattoos on their faces. And some of them also had a different body type, slender, with a longer torso and a softer face. SAM informed him that they were female in their private channel.

They walked behind their escorts who seem to be lunging with every step on the uneven floor which looked like thick ropes layed out side by side like a rug. He looked downward and saw why. On the heel of their foot was an opposable toe and as they step, their whole foot wrapped around the curves.

They reached a dais where a group was waiting for them with one Angara towering over them all. They were stopped in front of it then Jaal turned to them. "Wait here while I speak with my people," Jaal instructed.

"Sure. We're not going anywhere," Scott answered cheerfully, feeling excitement build. He looked forward to negotiating with them. He saw only half of the city but he was impressed with it. They were still struggling and an alliance with them would be extremely beneficial.

Jaal walked up the dais and stopped in front of the largest one. He was simply dressed in a dark blue vest with white sleeves and a blue shawl, but from the way the crowd defers to him, he guessed him to be the leader. Someone who's going to be a problem, he added with a sinking feeling. His whole demeanor looked mean. The guy has a nasty old scar running on his blue skin starting from his forehead, down his left eye, onto his cheek and ending at his jaw. He was also scowling at them before he turned his eyes away to talk to Jaal.

They spoke together for a long time in their language.

Scott was smiling pleasantly, both to convince the angara around them that they were not a threat and also due to the expectation that they would be welcomed here. The smile faded when he saw leader began glowing a dangerous, bright shade of blue like those of a blue-ringed octopus the longer he and Jaal talked. It was not only him; the people who heard their conversation were glowing brighter as well and they heard crackling in the air.

"Uh, Scott?" Marcus said worriedly as he looked at his bushy hair standing up, seeking a charge. He also felt his hair at the back of his neck standing up and they looked at each other in alarm.

"Guys, please say goodbye to Sid for me," Vetra said sadly.

They looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean Vetra?" Scott asked.

"If the lightning's going to hit, which do you think will it likely strike first: a tall, pointed person or two short and round ones?" she asked them, her sharp, pointy face looking down at them.

They then understood and was about to reassure her when they noticed her non-standard issue armor with the shiny collar and arm guards. They then looked at her in horror when they realized they were placed too close to her like a couple of meat sausages near a lightning rod.

"Tell me that's ceramic plating with a fake metal finish," Marcus said worriedly, nodding at her armor.

Vetra sighed. "I wish."

Marcus turned to Scott, eyes slightly wide. "Scott!" he hissed.

"I know. I'm thinking. Just give me some time," Scott said, furiously thinking up ways to calm the Angara down not only for her sake but for theirs.

"I detect rising levels of electrostatic energy in the Angara. Please be advised that it is close to being discharged onto their surroundings," SAM thought. "You mean us," Scott thought back, feeling cold sweat all over his body.

The leader made a sharp hiss and angrily shoved Jaal back with his arm, nearly throwing him on the onlookers and stomped his way to them until he was in front of Scott. "The vault is ours, human!" he roared in Scott's face. "Who are you to touch them without permission?"

"We didn't know it was yours," Scott stammered, bending back from the towering and glowering alien. Scott isn't exactly short at six feet but he only came to the middle of Angara's chest, which would be pressing down on him if he didn't lean back.

The slits in the alien's eyes narrowed and his face leaned closer to him. "Is that so?" he growled. "But does that mean you are free to use it?"

"Well, no-"

"But you still touched it?"

He hesitated. "Yes?"

The Angara stared hard at Scott for a long moment. "If you know it was not yours then why did you still touch it? Do you always meddle with something you don't understand?" he asked, exasperated.

Scott was about to say that yes, fiddling with unknown tech was what humans do, all the way back from Relay 314 which led to the First Contact War. But he had a feeling that answering truthfully will probably get them electrocuted.

He opened his mouth to give a diplomatic answer but the Angara flung his arms away and turned his back on them. "And now you have ruined it beyond hope! Not only have you have closed it off to us, it has patterned itself after your people!" he said, more for the benefit of the crowd than for them. At his words, the people murmured angrily while glaring at them. The Angara turned to face them and pointed an accusing finger at them. "The vaults are for the Angara people and you stole it!"

The crowd started to glow dangerously, flashes of lightning around them as they faced them, their lips pulled back showing their teeth.

"I'm sorry for touching them without your permission," he said, looking around at the angry faces, trying to placate them while not showing his fear. "We didn't know you existed until now. But it's not a complete loss," he said quickly as the big Angara made a sharp motion at his companions as if to order them to shoot them. "You can see that we can thrive on your environment so it means you can live in ours. You're welcome in Eos. We'd be good neighbors," he suggested hopefully.

"That is not enough. The knowledge within it is more important and you have withheld it forever from us."

Scott had to admit that that the withholding part was true. Ever since they activated it, the central chamber was sealed and refused all attempts to open it.

The Angara made a quick motion to the others and those started to raise their weapons, so Scott started to think quickly. He remembered SAM's findings that there were traces of Angaran DNA inside the vaults but the console at the central chamber remain unused. There were also marks on the outside doors which SAM identified as marks by claws mixed with those from the butt of the rifle and burns of mass accelerated rounds.

"Wait!" he yelled, making them stop from pointing their weapons at them. "You can't make the vault work, can you?" he asked the leader.

The Angara just stared at him, but it was not a hard stare. Wary, almost as if he feared that Scott knew the truth.

"So, if you can't use it, why do you say it was yours?"

He growled. "I am not here to give you a history lesson but since you're so troublesome in your ignorance, then I will explain," he said with annoyance. "The vault was built to teach us and part of its teaching was trying to open it. Each vault is different and gives different tests. We have one here right now. Everything you see here," he gestured to their surroundings, "was built with the knowledge of that vault. And we would have done the same with the one at Eos if not for your meddling," he finished with a sour tone.

Scott wet his lips, sensing there may be a chance they could walk out there alive. "Alright. So, let's go back to my first question. You can't make it work, but I can," he said, hoping he sound more confident and not fearful. "I was the one who activated the vaults." The crowd started to hiss but he went on, making his voice louder as he did so. "I was the one who opened it and I can help you get into the other vaults."

The big one stared at him then glanced at Jaal behind him. "His failure does not excuse your crime."

Jaal turned dark, the speckles of light on his skin disappearing like stars after a supernova. His fellow Angaran however, glowed brighter as they turned to him with angry faces.

"But we can make amends for it," Scott said, looking away from Jaal to focus on the angara before him. He sensed there was some information he was missing between Jaal and his people, but it will have to wait. "We can help you. We came in peace and we mean it. So, let's talk and we'll clear this misunderstanding."

"Your help is worthless," the Angara spat. "Just opening the vault is of no use to us, not without the Moshae."

Scott paused. "The Moshae? Who is the Moshae?"

"The Moshae Sjefa. Our foremost scholar. And she is lost to us." His tone went softer as he talked about the Moshae. "She was captured by the Kett, our enemy, along with many of our brothers and sisters and taken to their main base. It has been many months since anyone has last seen her."

Scott looked around them as the crowd seem to mourn the Moshae. Then an idea occurred to him. "We can take the Moshae back."

The Angara sneered at him. "How can you be sure of that? Do you think you are better than us that you dare take her back when many of our people failed?"

"We can try. You can't let her stay there, can you? And even if we failed, you'd lose nothing."

The Angara stared at him quizzically. "How do you mean?"

"You said we committed a crime, right? And you were just about to punish us," he said. The Angara glanced at his people, where some were still holding their weapons. "If we failed and died at the attempt, then it's as if you punished us. If we succeeded, you get the Moshae back. The friendship of our people will benefit both of us. You need allies against the Kett and we need your help to make a home here. You will greatly benefit without risking much." Then Scott clasped his hands together and adopted a more earnest tone. "Let me prove to you and your people my intentions and what I can do," he pleaded. "If you would allow me, I can help rescue the Moshae. If she knows the way into this vault then her knowledge is vital for not only my people's survival but yours. I'm not asking anymore from you. I only ask that you let me try."

The Angara stayed silent, considering it. But someone stepped forward before he could answer.

"I am Paraan Shie, governor of Aya," a female said from up the dais. She had a regal bearing despite only wearing a plain maroon suit with blue-green accents. Her skin glowed a beautiful lavender color turning to dark purple at her crown and a white tattoo made of two lines arched on top of her brows with an angle between it pointing up. " I speak for all angara and I say that we accept your bargain human."

She stepped down to their level, the crowd murmuring reverentially as she passed, until she reached the big Angara's side. "Evfra will assist you and do what he can to fulfill your quest," she said, nodding at the one beside her.

Efvra's jaw fell then he snapped it back up. "Governor, this is not a good idea," he pleaded at her, his voice losing its arrogant tone and became wheedling. "We do not know these people-"

"We have no other options," she answered. "Our forces have failed to take back the Moshae. If this human wants to try, let him try. It is of no loss to us."

"And if he succeeds?"

She turned away from him to face Scott, her eyes meeting his. He stared into them as if he was looking up at a night sky full of stars, beckoning with an unspoken challenge. "It is of no loss to us either. We need the Moshae and entry to the vaults. This one can give it to us. If what they need is a home and if we have access to the vaults, then we have enough worlds to spare."

She turned away and walked up the steps. Evfra saw her go, then whipped around to face Scott to glare at him with his icy blue eyes. "You have won, human. You are permitted to try to save the Moshae from the Kett," he said, almost spitting the words. He scowled even harder at them when they uttered a sigh of relief and immediately added, "But should you meet Death there, remember, that it was Evfra de Tershaav who sent you."


	17. Chapter 17

They left Aya and were escorted out the Shroud the same way they went in. They were instructed to go to the Nol System to talk with their informants then the cruisers went back in, the Shroud closing behind them. Scott nodded to Kallo to keep them on course and he went out to talk with their newest crew member down at the cargo bay.

Marcus had to vacate his room and camp in the Tech lab since they didn't think to allow a stranger within arm's reach of their tech station was a good idea. He hoped Jaal would see it as them offering a better room for a guest and not suspect the real reason.

Scott knocked on the door and heard Jaal answer so he asked, "Jaal, can I go in?"

The door swooshed open and he stepped through. He found their guest was busy unpacking his belongings to make the cabin comfortable enough for him. Fortunately, Marcus hadn't started decorating his room yet and he always made his things easy to pack and move. Only his couch was left as a reminder that someone else had roomed there before.

"Need any help?" Scott offered as he leaned in the door frame.

"Thank you, but no. I've brought only small things. It should not take a long time to set them," Jaal answered, putting a box with his stuff down on the desk. There was a hammock already set up at the corner. It seemed he preferred the swaying over the steadiness of the retractable bed at the wall.

"We haven't had a chance to talk alone. Are you comfortable here?"

"Yes. This room is adequate," he answered, gesturing to their surroundings. "As for my things, I had a talk with your 'procurement officer' about what I can bring on board. I've brought blankets just in case your beddings are insufficient or uncomfortable, a crate with some of my personal projects inside, jugs of nourishment paste, my armor and weapons along with their repair equipment and my toiletries. I hope you'll find them compliant," he said.

"Yes. They'll be returned to you shortly. Vetra had to put your things in her accounting on our equipment. Your meal packs and bottles were being checked by our doctor, Lexi T'Perro to check whether you might be allergic to our things," he said evenly. His things were quarantined until Vetra and Gil cleared it, though they were currently stumped on the crate which had resisted their efforts to scan it. Meanwhile, Dr. Lexi expressed surprise at seeing twenty-five bottles of salves, creams, and perfumes but informed him to warn Jaal about the candies in the kitchen. "Dr. Lexi says that if you find some brightly colored food in the kitchen, you should avoid it. She says it may give you a painful, burning sensation if you eat it. But mostly, our food is harmless to you though I can't guarantee the taste."

Jaal nodded then his skin grew murky and he gave an uneasy glance at the Human. Though he did not say it then, he found their appearance extremely strange, what with the fine moss on their heads, their color and their physique, which was both familiar and uncanny especially when he focused on their legs. And that was before he met his companions the other aliens. To his eyes they looked monstrous; he does not understand or know the purpose for the sharp, metallic planes of the Turians, the broad, leathery and rough faces of the Krogans, the blue-skinned and smooth faces of the Asari with the fringe on top of their heads and the smooth-skinned and long faces of the Salarians with their big, dark eyes. But they were bi-pedal with two arms, one mouth, one nose and two eyes like them and that was comforting.

Luckily, some of the aliens ended up on Aya, which gave them weeks to observe them and grow used to their appearance. So, he did not scream as he would have surely done if this was their first contact. He just said, "It feels strange to stay with the others. They're—you're—aliens."

"And you're also an alien to us! See, we're even," Scott said brightly.

He considered that and smiled. "We can consider that a place to start. Perhaps then, if we're all aliens, it's about what kind of aliens we are."

"Yes. But there are some things I need to understand here because we're new here and all. I'd like to ask you some questions if you don't mind?"

"Of course."

"First of all, where are we going?"

"Voeld. It is one of our colonies. It was said that it was once a thriving world, full of life. Now, it is a cold barren wasteland, where our people cling precariously to life and eke out a living on the unforgiving ice."

"What happened there?"

"Its vault has stopped working and we had not succeeded in activating it since."

"I'm sorry."

Jaal gave him an amused look. "For what? You did not cause it."

"I'm just saying that I feel for your loss, that I am willing to help you in any way I can."

Jaal was scrutinizing him intensely through his monocle so Scott cleared his throat and talked of something else. "Your city, Aya, is beautiful."

"Thank you. Your group was the first outsiders permitted to see it," Jaal answered stiffly. He wasn't completely truthful though. They've picked up some of their people wandering in the cluster, oblivious that they were deep in some of the Families' territory. The Families did not know what to do with them. Half of them wanted to get rid of them immediately while the other half pleaded for decency. As with all disputes, they deferred to Aya, so they sent the aliens there, hooded and then placed in windowless observation cells with no idea that they were in the most important city of the Angara. This fact Jaal didn't tell. Let the aliens work out how the initial contact with them went and how much of them they knew. His debt to him has a limit.

Scott observed that the color of his skin swirled but as to what that meant, he doesn't know yet. Perhaps if he asked more questions…"So, Paaran Shie, is she your ruler? Like a queen?"

"No. She is only a governor. She only mediates between the Families but never rule over them. That power resides in the Great Mother in each Family. But in an extraordinary time like this, she is fit to speak in all our behalf."

"I see. Who's Efvra?" he asked, keeping his tone light as possible.

Jaal's mouth quirked up and Scott had the feeling that Jaal knew that his embarrassment at the hands of the giant Angara was greatly in his mind. "Ah. He is the leader of our Resistance. He leads the group dedicated to fighting the Kett."

"He's very…friendly," was his comment on Evfra, choosing not to offend.

Jaal chuckled. "If there's a word to describe him, it won't be friendly. You can say he is harsh and short-tempered, but not friendly."

"Won't it offend your people?"

"When is honesty offensive? You call things by their proper names and to do otherwise is to be mistaken."

Scott noted that his people value brutal honesty and filed it away for later use. "So, if I call him harsh, then he won't be offended?"

Jaal's smile faded. "He won't. But he will attack you. That is his nature. You should do your best to survive him."

Scott's brow drew together as he stared at Jaal. "I don't understand," he said shortly. "He's not offended, but he will attack me?"

"He holds no ill-will against you. But he will fight you as is his nature, and you should defend yourself as best as you can. That is the only way he will respect you."

Scott still doesn't understand but noted that he should avoid calling Evfra anything if he valued his life. "It does explain how he welcomed us back earlier."

"Experience with the Kett makes us distrustful of all aliens," Jaal answered, with a hint of anger. The speckles in his skin glowed brighter.

"I can understand that. We've had a few fights with the Kett too."

"Then you do understand our reasons for distrust. When they came to Heleus, they took our freedom to travel where we wished and destroyed our peace. The Kett abduct Angara, often, and we never see our people again."

Scott noted that, despite Jaal saying he distrusted aliens like them, he seemed to be freely giving information to them. He also noted it occurred whenever he spoke with emotion. "Do they have a leader?"

"The Archon. They came to us before when they first arrived. They never showed themselves openly after we chased them out, but we know they are there, hiding in the darkness of space, directing all kett to wage this relentless war that has no meaning." His voice grew stronger and harsher, his skin growing darker with the speckles brighter, as he said, "If we find them, we will make them pay dearly for what they'd done."

Scott observed that changes in the color of his skin coincided with the times that Jaal was feeling a strong emotion.

"I detect heightened electrical levels from him, consistent with physiological changes in his skin which results in the change of color that you perceive," SAM thought.

"Thanks," Scott thought back. "And SAM?"

"Yes?"

"We should stop scanning our friend here until we know how they feel about their privacy."

SAM paused. It searched Ryder's memories in an attempt to understand why.

"Which also means that you should stop scanning my memories without my permission," Scott thought.

"Do I have your permission?"

"No."

SAM paused again. It searched its mandate and found a directive to comply with Scott's requests, even if it didn't understand why. "As you wish, Ryder," it replied, then deciding to scan its memory banks instead to make sense of it while noting Ryder's instructions towards Jaal and also about itself. A folder titled Privacy was created where it stored all its observations.

After dealing with SAM, Scott focused his attention to Jaal.

"They?" he asked, referring to Jaal's pronoun for the Archon.

Jaal frowned. "I did not mean the Archon was of many. I meant only one, with undetermined sex. The Kett have no biological sex I believe."

Scott understood the translation error and skipped it. "Can we go from the first time your people met them?"

"Of course. You must understand first that we don't believe we have arisen naturally but due to design by a higher being."

Scott gave a wry smile. "I understand. We believed the same thing a long time ago. Some of us still believe in it. Our co-pilot and xenogeologist, Suvi Anwar believes that God exists."

Jaal looked curiously at him. "Your co-pilot is interesting. But do you consider it fact as well?"

Scott blinked and he frowned. "It's just a belief. Facts had nothing to do with it," he explained. Technically, this is true. Believers insist that the existence of their deity or the truth of their faith cannot be proven by empirical or rational means, so objective reality really has nothing to do with it.

"To us, it is. The Forge has proven it."

"I'm sorry-what? What is the Forge?"

"The cradle of our civilization, where all Angara originated. It is defunct now and buried in our birth planet's ruins but it looked similar to the vaults. Our archaeological studies tie our origins to it. If they allow you, you can view a copy back at Aya."

His lips parted and his brow raised in surprise. Apart from the hanar who believed that they were uplifted by the extinct race, the Protheans, he knew no other race who claimed to be designed at this present age or shown tangible proof of it. "Wow. That's really incredible. I've never heard of another race with an origin like yours."

Jaal nodded gravely. "I explained this to you because this is important to understand our war with the Kett. About sixty years ago, some of our bands found a dead ship floating on the outer edges of the cluster with Kett clinging on to the debris like people drowning at sea. They went to investigate and were surprised to find them still alive, despite being in vacuum. They brought them to Aya for our leaders to examine them. At that time, we just discovered the truth of our origin and were curious to meet the being that made us. The Kett's survival was miraculous to us. When they were lucid enough, we asked them if they were our creators."

Scott had an inkling where the story was going but he wanted Jaal to tell him himself so he asked, "What did they say?"

"They claimed they were. They told a long tale that their people have created us long ago with a mission to seed the galaxy with life and now had returned to see their creations. They did not expect the Shroud to be there and shred their ships. They convinced our Moshae then and some of her people to build them a place of worship in one of our worlds so we could ascend like them and our people happily agreed. They said they have an answer to immortal life and looking at their ability to survive, we believed them. A long time after they left and which none returned, our current Moshae, who was next in line then, felt suspicion in her heart and went down the vault at Aya to remove her doubts. But the vault told her they did not create us and that they were merely just another sentient race."

So the vault is maybe sentient, Scott thought. It may also have knowledge on the rest of the galaxy since it apparently recognizes the Kett. However, something about it made him wonder if the Angara were either just that gullible or simply naïve. "There's something I don't understand. The Kett weren't able to pass through the Shroud and yet you believe they were your creators? Shouldn't they also pass through it like you do since your technology is based on the vaults they made?"

"It was the first time we met another race other than us. We were more curious than cautious and also ecstatic to have confirmation of our origins. We did not suspect them then when they said they had created us long ago and that their technology's evolution diverged from the vaults due to some upheavals in their own worlds. They said there was a period where their civilizations lost contact with each other and it was only now that they started reconnecting. Then they discovered that their ancestors have seeded races in their early history and so they set out to find us. All lies of course." He gave a rueful chuckle. "I admit our actions then were unwise. In our eagerness to meet our Maker, we forgot that the universe may not be so favorable to us; that other beings we encounter may not be as considerate to us as we wish for them. Still, even though this incident has given us and still is giving us a lot of grief, we value its lesson. We won't be so trusting and welcoming to strangers as before," he said and gave Scott a look of acute awareness.

Scott tried not to react on Jaal's look of suspicion and continued to act as if he was harmless due to their being in need. After all, who would doubt a beggar and refuse them help just because they were a stranger? He also noticed Jaal's knowing stare and fought the urge to act on the doubt in his mind; the knowledge that Jaal was aware of what he was doing and so all the things he told may not be all true. Maybe they are now playing a mind game and Jaal was testing to see if he gives him a reason not to trust them. Maybe not. But for both scenarios, the best step for him was not to rise to the baiting. "It's unfortunate for us both that the Kett have already spoiled your trust on alien relations. I hope you'll see that we aren't the Kett and we really wish to have your friendship."

"We shall see," was Jaal's only reply to that and he continued his story. "As to the Shroud, we are not certain if it is a creation of the vaults. It appeared during the Cataclysm about a hundred years ago, when all the vaults failed and started destroying the planets they made bountiful. We were only able to pass through it due to our scholars who survived Aya and improved our ships in its barren moon. Aya was far more beautiful then, its cities dotting its surface like dewdrops caught in a spider's web in the early morning light. Now, it was reduced only to one city and we could not restore it to its former glory through its vault without inviting the Shroud in and tear the planet apart."

"So what happened after the vault told the Moshae the truth about the Kett?"

"She spread the news to everyone. At first, we didn't believe her and were angry at her for revealing it. Some of us must have informed the Kett so they returned. They told her that she committed blasphemy against them and tried to take over the Aya vault. She and her believers stood their ground and prevented them from taking it, whereupon a fight broke out and some of our people lay dead. When we saw what they had done, we grew angry. Creators or not, we will not tolerate injustice. We drove them out and hunted them until they were never seen again. Some survived or else we wouldn't be fighting them until now. But we never saw again the previous Moshae and some of our people who went with them."

"So how come they're back?"

Jaal shook his head in deep bafflement. "We don't know. We had a decade of peace after they were driven out. But then, our people started disappearing. Tradition then was for our males to live in the wild upon reaching maturation while our females stay with their mothers in the cities. Then there was a year when very few males returned to the cities for our festival. The Great Mothers didn't think much of it then, since they would wander long and far, sometimes not returning for years. When it continued into the second year, they grew concerned and talked with the other Families which experienced the same and agreed that it was very odd. By the third year, they sent some soldiers to go out and track their sons who were on their first journey out. They found that the kett were lying in wait to kidnap them as soon as they were out of sight of the city walls."

"And then?"

"The Families ended the practice and recalled all their people back into their cities. No one now can explore freely wherever they wished and to go from city to city, world to world, required a party. This has caused great frustration among my grandfathers' generation, who find living in the cities too confining and tedious. Aya can explain more how this affected our lives. The war is still on, but now the Kett have grown numerous. They attacked our colonies, severely limiting our territories and kept each Family separated from each other. As of present, they are currently circling our worlds, waiting for any lapse of our vigilance so they could capture us all while our families repel them, day after day, year after year. It was only here, in Aya, that we can feel the sense of peace and freedom we had before their arrival."

"Because of the Shroud," Scott said.

Jaal nodded. "The Kett may have strange technology but it does not allow them to pass through it."

Scott was also curious how they can pass through it but decided it's a question for another time. Asking it too early may spook Jaal and stop telling important information freely as he does now. "Did they explain why they were trying to capture your people?"

"Before we drove them out, they said that our existence as we are now will lead to the destruction of the galaxy. They came here to save us and everyone from that fate by asking us to join them in unity and eternal peace, free of oppression or war," Jaal answered. He fell silent, the speckles in his skin waning. "We don't know what they meant, since all that they do is contrary to what they preach. They refused to explain it and the Kett we captured refused to speak more about it, whatever we did to them."

"You can't make them talk?"

"No. If they are captured, they can decide not to eat or drink for months and lapse into a catatonic state, until their body eats them inside and they die of hunger. They do not feel pain, loneliness or madness. Their zealous belief that they came to save us from ourselves was the only thing they will speak. That makes it difficult to wipe them out completely. They don't live like us; they have no cities, no supply lines, no factories we can cripple. They seem to be only living in their ships but how they managed to live all these years, we don't know."

Scott tutted softly. If they were going to defeat the Kett, it will not take conventional military strategies. But then, he wondered, if the Kett cannot pass through the Shroud, then how did they build up their numbers? There were two possibilities. Either they figured some way past the Shroud to get reinforcements or they have a rapid rate of reproduction. Maybe they're like the Asari who give birth via parthenogenesis. Maybe they clone themselves. But he remembered there were differences in the faces and arrangement of the facial bones on the Kett they encountered so cloning was unlikely.

Or maybe they reproduce by breaking off a limb which will then grow into an adult. He knew enough about alien reproduction, which may not be the same as the human norm. Anything is possible.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. It was useless speculating with little information and so returned his attention to the topic at hand. "Back on Aya, I'm wondering what Evfra meant by you. I meant-"

"My failure?" Jaal uttered a harsh sound. "Yes, you heard right."

"I'm sorry-"

"It is alright. And you apologize too much, even for things you did not do." Jaal looked at the screen, the light shining on his monocle. "I was part of a scholar team sent to study the vault in Eos. I was supposed to protect them but-I failed. The Kett were not content to take our people; they want to take our inheritance too. But they cannot open it, so they were laying in wait for any Angara to claim it. And my team had."

Scoot was about to express his condolences, but he remembered that he apologized too much.

"We fended off their attacks, week after week after week. We decided to retreat and try another time, this time with the might of the Resistance behind us but the Kett would not let us go. They hunted us like animals. Until," he bowed his head shamefully, looking at his empty hands, "I was the only one left."

He looked so pitiful there, with so much grief and shame hanging over him that he reached a hand placed it gently on his shoulder. "We'll pay the Kett back for that," he promised.

Jaal turned to look at the hand on his shoulder. His gaze was not hostile, but Scott felt self-conscious about the gesture and withdrew it quickly. Jaal then directed his gaze to him, searching his face.

Jaal did not know if the alien was being sincere. Though his alien blue eyes looked at him earnestly, his skin remained a dusty white color with its pinkish undertones. Throughout their conversation, it never changed with every word he spoke despite the feelings he expressed. There was no light in his skin, the light indicative of life. His was a dead color, the color of non-living things, like rocks and trees and- the Kett.

He suppressed the urge to shudder and nodded. "I look forward to the time we arrive at their base and carve the names of my team into their skulls."

Scott and Jaal talked more about Aya, the governor and some basic etiquette before they called it a night.


	18. Chapter 18

Voeld was exactly how Jaal described it. As they touched down on a snowy bank, Scott admitted to himself that its bleakness had a certain beauty to it. Its mountains were majestic; its skies lit with auroras. The world was silent, muffled, the snow drifting slowly. It looked benign as if inviting them to lay down their burdens, forget their troubles and just enjoy. Enjoy the endless peace among the soft snow.

Or maybe it's hypothermia. Because Voeld's temperature was cold enough to freeze things instantly.

"Pathfinder, the temperature is negative seventy degrees Celsius, well below freezing. I would suggest you find shelter immediately," SAM reminded.

"Thank you, SAM for that wonderful observation," Scott replied.

"Sarcasm."

"Again, a wonderful observation."

"Are you done muttering to yourself?" Drack said, his face hidden behind snow piling on his globe-like visor while Cora beside him batted away the snow on top of her own.

"Sorry." He looked at Jaal, who shivered to rid his rofjinn of snow and stamped his feet irritably, paying no attention to their conversation. He did not understand yet what Drack said. Scott didn't know how Jaal would react to an AI in his head, considering that even his people are wary of him because of that, and so told his crew not to inform him of SAM's link to him yet, letting him think that SAM was just an external computer.

"The Resistance base is just nearby. They have heating facilities. Follow me," Jaal said and hopped towards the nearby cliffs, where orange poles like landing lights glowed in the gloom.

"Wonderful. Looking forward to a hot meal and maybe a warm welcome," Scott said, shivering as a wind blew snow in their faces. He let Drack first to wade through the snow though.

They followed a path where some heating lamps were placed on intervals, giving their suits some respite against the unforgiving cold. They followed Jaal until they reached a cave with a few patrols. Jaal spoke briefly to them, and they let the visitors through.

The base was a series of interconnected caves, where the wider caverns housed the Angara's vehicles and other supplies. Heating lamps were installed along their path, wires running up and down on the side of their feet. They weaved through it all until they found the command center. A projection of Voeld hung in the center as people worked on the consoles around it. The cave was filled with the chatter of daily communications from their field agents and other stations.

In the midst of it all stood the commander of the base busily barking directions. Her skin from neck up was pink-colored with a dark crown and she was dressed in dark cold weather clothes. They went to her, where Jaal drew his arm. She drew hers and met his arm, elbow to elbow, fists to shoulder, in a kind of salute.

She turned to Scott and said, "Welcome to the resistance of Voeld. I'm Anjik do Xeel, the commander of this base. Evfra sent word of you." Her eyes studied him curiously. "So, this is the one the governor permitted to rescue the Moshae?"

Scott went forward. "Yes..uh-" he attempted to mimic Jaal's salute but she did not reciprocate. Instead, she stared at him, then said, "Your attempt to mimic our customs is flattering. Perhaps later we will teach you how to do it properly, when you've proven your honor?"

"Right." Scott withdrew the arm. "So, Evfra told us that you have something that can help us rescue the Moshae?"

Her skin took an ugly shade of her color. "Yes. I was instructed by the governor to help you, short of giving you my people. Follow me," she said briskly and went toward a console on the central hub. The technician working on it jumped out of the way. She tapped at the console and a projection appeared on the screen. "The Moshae was held on the Vaotessa system on the planet Prachonyi," she said, nodding at a blue, icy planet, glowing green at the edges due to its atmosphere. She tapped at it again where it zoomed in at a spot on its surface. A 3D map appeared. "This is a major Kett base, where some information of theirs passes through. We have tried infiltrating it, but its orbital and planetary defenses are preventing our efforts. It is also where our kidnapped brethren were taken. We have an outpost further south, Daar Techiix where some of the people who tried to infiltrate it are stationed. You might try going to them first. I've already sent word ahead, so they'll be expecting you. Do you have any other questions?"

Scott asked for maps and some tips surviving the planet. When the commander has answered all of that, she dismissed them.

Scott and his team then proceeded to the end of the cave to arrive at a cliff overlooking the countryside. Through the blizzard, faint lights were flickering, showing the way to the outpost as Commander Do Xeel has said.

"Tempest, can you read me?" Scott said on his omni-tool. Kallo answered so he instructed him to drop the Nomad at the location he sent. A while later, the Tempest passed overhead and dropped their vehicle, almost missing the edge of the cliff when it bounced.

"Alright people. Let's go to Techiix," Scott announced and headed to the driver's side, but Cora had beaten him to the driver seat, so he went around the front to settle in next to her. "I was supposed to drive," he said to her petulantly.

Cora chuckled as she buckled her seatbelt. "Scott, everyone knows you can't drive."

He stared at her in shock and hurt then shot back, "At least I can dance!"

She rolled her eyes and put her hands on the steering wheel. "Whatever. We're not dancing to Techiix so sit back down, Twinkle Toes."

She started the engine and then they were off. Following the lights, they drove down the cliff and onto the plain below and flinging up snow behind them.

Daar Techiix is a hidden base carved under a mountain, made of tunnels that spread out far under the surface with many openings like a lemming's den. There's a beacon at the top of the tower to guide the ships coming to and fro to the hangars due to Voeld's constant bad weather. It was not really a military facility as its main function was to refine the eezo from Voeld's abundant deposits.

The closest opening to it was on the side of a steep hill with a giant door just south of the base. They drove onto the incline and stopped before the door. The crew disembarked and Jaal went to one side and scraped ice off a panel. He opened it showing a console inside where he put his authorization. A scanning beam ran over him, then the console went dark. He closed the panel and waited for the door to open.

The doors swung open to the inside slowly and creaking, revealing a tunnel. Its walls were not as rough as the main base, being made of polished synthetic material, rather than hewn rock. Purplish white light shone from long bulbs running lengthwise on the ceiling which SAM warned them was emitting a high amount of UV light so they shouldn't take their helmets off at any time.

_Why UV? _Scott thought_. For decontamination? Did they suspect we carrying some kind of pathogens that can't affect us but becomes a plague to them?_

Then he saw Jaal remove his helmet. He opened his mouth to warn him but stopped when he saw how much Jaal enjoys it, basking in it.

He puzzled over it then moved on without comment, making a mental note of it. Then SAM offered to store it in its memory since his degrades faster. He allowed it, then thought to make a mental note to be used to the AI popping in and out of his thoughts. The AI didn't reply.

The tunnels were segmented at intervals, with a groove in the middle of each segment to make a containment field to slow down infiltrators, and vents running alongside the walls. They walked on the familiar wavy floor, following Jaal until they arrived at a hall with mounted guns at the other end. There, the female Angara with dull pink skin and dusty green coloring at her crown and neck, wearing a dark green puffy suit, waited for them with some of her people behind her. Jaal went to her and greeted her in the Angaran way, then she turned towards the Pathfinding team.

"So, you're the aliens who offered to save the Moshae Sjefa," she said matter of factly, her gray eyes sweeping curiously over them. "Follow me," she instructed and led them past the hall and through the twisting tunnels that branched off unto unknown places. They were directed to their mission control where Angara sat behind consoles on rows going down to the table at the center. The commander sparked and the nearest Angara stopped gaping at them unlike the rest and frantically tapped on his console, whereupon a projection sprang from the table. It showed the planet they will be hitting as well as the Kett defenses.

On the outer edge of the system observing stations with powerful telescopes orbited and comm buoys near it with partners leading to the main Kett Fleet around the planet. These served to watch for approaching ships and warn the fleet should any arrive. The base itself was only a small spot on the surface of the planet, where two artificial satellites watched over it and to relay information to the fleet. Commander Heckt tapped at the console on the table and the base was magnified. The main facility where they believed the Moshae was kept was slightly off the center of the base surrounded by buildings of unknown purposes. Some looked like hangars and there were strips of clear areas of what they thought as landing pads. Some points were highlighted, which the commander explained as the Kett's anti-aircraft equipment. At the center was a tower that emitted a barrier to protect the base from orbital bombardment. Around it, all was a wall about fifty meters tall with mounted guns on the top.

"So, no one has ever actually seen the inside of one of these places before?" Scott asked after she finished explaining.

"None who have lived to tell. Prisoners who go in are never seen again… they disappear," the commander answered, her gray eyes bright in the gloom.

"But haven't you staged rescues?"

"Sure, we've liberated Kett work camps, but never one of these facilities. We lost so many fighters trying and could never get in. We have not been able to disable the tower that protects it from orbital bombardment. Then their anti-aircraft system had shot down our ships attempting to land. The land around the facility is seeded with mines and there are guns mounted on the walls so approaching from the ground is not advisable. Land vehicles will also be vulnerable to orbital bombardment."

"You can't approach from the air even with your cloaking technology?"

"No. The stealth technology of our ships is designed for space, not atmosphere. We have a different kind for our aircraft but somehow, they can detect us even with our cloaking."

"Couldn't you overwhelm the transmitter from orbit?"

"The barrier's too strong, as strong as those on a dreadnought. We might be able to bring it down slowly but can't risk it during the battle with the fleet. Our guns are too powerful, and the facility is too near the tower. One miscalculated shot and maybe we won't have even the Moshae's ashes to take home."

"What about the minefield? Could you destroy it from space and then use the destruction for cover against the guns on the walls and enter the base by land?"

"We could. But we'd have to get past the defenders to destroy the satellites so our ships can land undetected and the ground force to disembark. Then destroy the ships in orbit which will try to guide the base while defending ourselves from its companions. To land on the planet, we need to have orbital supremacy first, and if we have that, then we don't need to land. But if we can land there without defeating the fleet, we'd have to find a way to disable their radar on the walls which can cut through the dust made from bombing the land mines before our ground troops can cross. Our aircraft can't use mass accelerators to take out the wall's defenses due to the barrier. Or if they do, they'd be destroyed by their anti-aircraft guns before the barrier weakens." She paused and her gaze went sharp. "All this our people can do which raises the question of your usefulness to this operation," she said unexpectedly with a tinge of disdain.

Scott didn't react but inwardly, he was taken aback. He thought, by the neutral way she welcomed them into her base, that they'd have a reprieve from the hostility of the Angara. It seemed that in the whole cluster, no one wanted them. It was disheartening to find that the people they've encountered here are either murderous towards them or passively hostile. But, since they're the weakest faction, passively hostile is better and he'll have to put up with it. At least, there's a chance that it might become warmer.

He gritted his teeth and focused on the matter at hand, ignoring the niggling sense of outrage over their treatment. So, it's a race, then, he thought to himself. This meant they'll have to get the Moshae first to win the bet, with a way that the Angara cannot do. Before he could speak, she said, "It's not a question of how. It's a question of when. Sure, we can capture the base with our current power but if the Kett Armada arrives, it'd be over."

He nodded to show understanding. "About the anti-aircraft system. Have you tried jamming their ground systems?"

"We did. But their electronic countermeasures are better than ours." She tapped at her console and the projection changed to display what the Kett's electronic countermeasures were capable of, which also showed that it was beyond the Tempest's capability.

"What's their anti-aircraft system? Are they using surface to air missiles?"

"On occasion, but they have laser and mass accelerator weapons."

Fair enough, Scott thought. But what about something smaller than ships? Surely the Kett wouldn't be using those guns on that. Why, it'd be like using a hydraulic press to crack a nut open. "With that power, they can't be using it all the time. What would they do if something smaller than a shuttle passes through their airspace like-" He paused. Do they have birds here? "Flying animals?"

The commander just stared at him.

"Clouds? Debris?" he suggested wildly.

"There are no flying animals on the planet. As for debris, they may or may not. Their technology is sophisticated enough to distinguish whether something that is falling towards them is merely debris-or a missile. We have tried to disguise bombs as debris. It nearly worked last time, but our ships were bombarded from orbit when we tried to land. Needless to say, they shoot unidentified objects falling from the air," she finished, giving him a knowing look as if to head off what she thought he'd be thinking.

"You didn't try to drop your personnel directly from the air?"

The commander's color grew murky. "Why would we do that?" she asked, puzzled. "Why would we try to get our people killed?"

He sidestepped her question. "Say if people were to drop into their airspace, will they shoot?"

The commander looked at him as if he was funny. "Those with a parachute, yes. They don't bother those without as everyone knows no one can survive a fall from that height."

"Ah," he said, tossing his head. He now had a plan. "Let me look at the base again."

The commander tapped at the console and the table projected the base. From the corner of his eye, he saw her lean back and look at him with a silent challenge, but he ignored it. It was annoying to be repeatedly treated with disdain, but he knew that the best option for them now was not to react to it and swallow their pride. He'll prove them wrong and then his pride will enjoy how they'll eat their words. He focused his attention on the barrier emitter. The dark green tower rose from the ground like a giant's spine, with two platforms at the top between a short, stubby column. He focused on the wings, where the space was wide enough for a shuttle to land on and felt his hope increase.

Yes, that space will do for their plan. It's wide enough for them to have a chance to succeed.

Their plan was not perfectly risk-free though. It counted more on the Kett's behavior rather than their skill. Their plan had more probability of failure than success and with that, it begged the question of whether it was worth the trouble. Do they really need the Angara's help?

He thought about their colony within striking distance of the Kett base on Eos and the Kett shooting at them immediately, unwilling to talk thus eliminating the chance for negotiation. He thought of the Nexus floating there unprotected, desperately mining ores on the surrounding asteroids to rebuild their shipyard. They have only one Pathfinder because all the others were either dead or missing. Would it be better if they waited for more favorable time? Or not fight in this battle at all?

But this was maybe the last opportunity they had of establishing an alliance with the Angara. Since they claim the vaults as their own, it was possible that if they refuse here now, they might try to retake the Eos vault or the whole planet and they can do nothing about it yet. Or the Angara might try to attack them to punish them for their "theft." But if they succeed here, their crime might be forgiven, and they might be put under their protection. Why, if they work at it strategically enough, they might convince the Angara to share their technology too. They have a lot to gain from their friendship. And even if he and his team die here, it might wipe them of their crime even if they will not gain an alliance.

There was also the fact that the Kett brought about his father's death and that of their teammates back at Habitat Seven. Sure, it was the environment that was the direct cause of their death, what with their team being killed by flying rocks, lightning, and poisonous air respectively, but the Kett made that environment by activating the vault on the planet on the first place and summoning the Shroud that started the whole thing. If they have not activated the vault, the Shroud would not have appeared to shred their ark so their team had to be sent down to stop it. Their situation might have ended up better than they have now. At least they would still have his father with them, who would be the one working hard on this problem instead of him.

He blinked. He realized what he was doing and immediately shook his head to clear those thoughts. His feelings were already clouding his judgment. He needed to focus on purely rational reasons to justify their next step. "I need to speak to our leader about this," he said finally, straightening up. His answer made the commander stop watching him with amusement on her face and it returned hastily to impassive. "Of course," she said and signaled her people to escort them out.

* * *

AN: So you probably noticed I did not update last week as expected. Sorry. I'm quite busy right now and I can't guarantee I'd post regularly. Also, there's a lot of technical details that needs to be ironed out before it's ready to be posted. So expect irregular updates ahead.


	19. Chapter 19

Back on the Tempest, he pulled Marcus and Cora off to his room for a meeting to discuss his strategy. His room was half its size now, like a fourth of a pie partitioned lengthwise, separating his bedroom from the coffee table and his study by a cabinet that displayed some of his model ships and cars and pictures of his family and friends. There he revealed to them what they had to do to infiltrate the Kett facility.

When he finished, Marcus whistled, leaning back in his chair. "Well, shit. This is even crazier than Habitat Seven."

"I know so if you have unfinished business, you need to finish it now," Scott said, looking from one to the other, forearms on his thighs while his hands were clasped between them.

Cora sat silently in thought, her lips pinched together. Then she raised her head to meet his gaze. "How do you know the Kett won't shoot at us?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I don't. I was counting on their overconfidence," he said and leaned back facing her by straightening an arm resting on his thigh. "If you have any other ideas, I'll gladly welcome them."

She looked uneasy but she didn't say anything.

"I don't," Marcus piped up, a curious gleam in his eye. "From what we heard at the base, this is the best we've got." Then he reached out and clapped them both at the shoulder. "Well, fellas, it's been a pleasure knowing you," he said, smiling at them both that Cora had to smile. She looked away from Marcus and turned to Scott. "Goodness. Following you, Ryders is just one hell of an adventure."

Scott grinned.

"Anyway, are you going to tell the Nexus?" Marcus inquired.

His grin faded. Reporting to Captain Dunn didn't trouble him, but the mention of the Nexus brought up the thought of his sister still in a coma. If he died here, who will take care of her? Will the people at the station cut support on vegetative people to conserve resources when they have no one to speak for them? "As soon as we're done here."

"Alright then," Marcus said and rose up. "I'll just round up the others and have a mini party at the cargo bay if you don't mind. I really need a drink."

"Count me in," Cora answered, rising too. "This might be the last time I'll have it."

"I'll join you later," Scott said. They nodded and went out of his cabin and while the two hollered for their crew to gather around, Scott went up to the ladder beside his door and onto the bridge connecting the cockpit to the research station. He crossed it and walked up to the vidcon room and sent a priority message to the Nexus. He had to wait for nearly an hour before the image of Captain Dunn appeared, looking…furious?

"Where the hell have you been?" she barked.

He leaned slightly back, not expecting that reaction from her. "I've made contact with another alien race," he said, in a voice smaller than what he thought he was going to use to announce his progress and told her what happened at Aya and the bet he'd made with the Angara. He finished with their plan in infiltrating the Kett base. The captain listened silently but still fuming as he talked and when he finished, kept silently fuming still. When it stretched into minutes with him awkwardly looking at her glaring eyes, he had to risk asking her problem. "Captain?"

She screwed her eyes shut and with difficulty, said, "Do you know how we've been ever since you and your team disappeared without informing us where you went?"

He leaned his head back. "Ah."

"You nearly gave us a heart attack. The Founders are still missing with one murdered and then you suddenly disappeared. What did you think we felt about that?"

Scott resisted the impulse to sheepishly scratch his head. She has a point; it would have been very hectic at the station if they thought the Nexus killer struck again. "I'm sorry, but we had to do this. It's a risk but we can't get anywhere without taking one."

"Going on an unsanctioned mission without informing anyone of your whereabouts? That is a violation of protocol, not only of common sense. Why are you so sure that they will not try to trick you to kill you?"

"They asked me not to inform anyone else about going to their city. It was a test of trust and if we had refused, we'd have blown our chance," he answered defensively. "When we arrived there, we didn't know the extent of their technology. We've seen their ships pass through the Shroud without being harmed. I am not sure if they'd be able to detect any covert communications we might have used." He added, in a smaller and slightly petulant voice, "Besides, you could have asked SAM anytime. It goes anywhere I go."

She looked as if she wanted to strangle him through the projection. "Ask SAM?" she said, her cracking. "Do I look like a servant to you, Mr. Ryder, that I personally have to go ask where you are? If you can't make the report yourself, then ask SAM or any of your team to make it on your behalf."

"Yes, Ma'am."

She put a hand up her temple to rub it and then dropped it and gestured with a chopping motion to emphasize each point as she said, "From now on, Pathfinder, I expect regular reports from you or any of your team if you can't do it. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

She put her hands on her hips and huffed out the last bit of anger she was about to use to ream him out more, before asking him to repeat the plan to save the Moshae. When he finished, she was shaking her head. "This is extremely risky. Are you sure there's no other way?" she asked.

He nodded. "The base was heavily fortified. The Angara are going to do the other way. Either we had to risk this or not. I'm also open to suggestions."

"Could we ask to do something else?"

He tried not to smile at the thought that she'd try to bargain and shook his head. "This was their condition. They won't accept any less than their scholar's rescue."

He saw her bow her head and put a hand over her face, rubbing her temples. She didn't speak for a long time and he knew she was weighing the costs and benefits of their attempt for an alliance as he had back at Techiix.

She sighed and dropped the hand. "You're the only Pathfinder we have left," she said, showing that she too thought that they have more to gain from an alliance with the Angara.

"I know. That's why we need to make arrangements for SAM's transfer just in case we fail." She was still captain of the Hyperion where SAM's physical body was housed. "I won't have time to authorize a transfer," he said. If they were targeted, their death would be instantaneous and to transfer SAM out of his head before the bullets even hit would literally be suicide for him.

"Are you sure you can't leave Cora to carry on as Pathfinder?"

"I need her there. She's crucial for the operation. I don't have any other people who have the training and the biotic capability to do this."

"SAM?" she called off-screen, "What would happen if the Pathfinder were to die without transferring you to someone?"

SAM answered them both, its voice echoing due to the lag of the vidcon in the Tempest. "It would cause severe damage to my processing matrix."

"But will our technicians here be able to repair you?"

"Possibly. Most of the knowledge on my creation is in my memory banks which will not be affected. However, the crucial ones are locked in Alec Ryder's memories which are tied to my processing matrix."

She cursed. "Dammit. This would mean we would lose SAM too." She chewed her lip, staring past him as she thought. Then her gaze returned to his face. "Fine. Those Angara better keep their word," she muttered. "Good luck to you and your team, Pathfinder," she said, almost as if she was saying goodbye. "Know that your sacrifices will be honored. Rest assured we'll take care of your sister and carry on your work."

"Thank you, Captain and… good luck," he said back. She nodded then closed the line.

* * *

They went back to the Voeld Angara base and he informed the commanders about their plan to sneak into the Kett facility. As they listened, their expression went from disbelief to acceptance then looked at each other.

"If you succeed, you'll give us more time to save the Moshae and get out of the system before reinforcements arrive," Commander Do Xeel admitted. "Very well. We will incorporate your plan to ours. We'll need time to lure the destroyer guarding the planet out the system. Have your team ready anytime."

"Wait, destroyer? The Kett have a destroyer?"

"Yes. That is why we haven't been able to get close."

He paused. If they have a destroyer, then what's the problem? Destroyers were meant to hit large targets; it's not going to hit a cruiser which their plan was based on. Surely their smaller vessels can cripple it? Unless its point defense is extremely good. "And you don't have something to counter it? Like a dreadnought of your own?"

"The Families won't spare them since the Armada may attack a homeworld at any time. Even so, those won't have much of an effect since kinetic barriers and armor are useless against it. Besides, we would prefer not to engage it so near the planet, as the range of its weapon is wide." She tapped at the console and the cluster map appeared, highlighting the neighboring system. "We've observed high Kett interest in the Remav system, so another fleet will try to draw it there. But even if we succeed in luring it out, it's too near so we have to finish the battle quickly."

Commander Do Xeel then explained the broad facts of the battle plan. Scott listened looking respectful while thinking to himself that the Andromedan way of fighting was very different from theirs. For one, the Angara and the Kett don't form a straight line facing each other and slugging it out as if they're infantry of gentlemen.

After the meeting, he went back to the Tempest parked outside and emerged onto the cargo bay where Marcus and Cora were working with Gil and Vetra to prepare the room for the operation while Jaal above them on the platform looked, silent but alert. The air was tense with knowledge that at any time, the question of their survival will be tested.

Two days had passed and Commander Do Xeel sent them a message to assemble on the orbit of Voeld and join the rest of the fleet. When everyone was accounted for, a carrier drove them to the system. It carried frigates, cruisers and small combat vessels, which were designed differently from the ships that escorted them to Aya. Well, some of them anyway.

The normal frigates were flatter with their guns like pincers and rotating thrusters at the wings. The cruisers were spherical with a smooth surface, flaring at the back to hide the light of the exhaust when viewed from the front. However, this design was a minority because the rest of the fleet was composed of the ugliest ships he has ever seen. There was no uniform design he could discern or what purpose it served. To be kind, he would say they look like a bunch of misshapen potatoes, with thrusters and guns and tubes which look like vents poking all around it like eye nodes. But if he were, to be honest, they look like….shit. Stealthy shit, to be fair. Discreet scans by their ship suggest that either they were covered with metamaterials that cloak from radar or infrared scanners or have an efficient heat storage system which made their heat signature too low to be easily detected from afar (or else indistinguishable from other celestial objects like asteroids) and nearly undetectable when they were idle, as some of them are doing now.

Even so, despite the ugly design, he thought the Angara's manufacturing capability must be great enough to produce ships of unique designs instead of mass-producing their fleet by following a very simple, easy to make and assemble design.

Halfway to the system, the carrier stopped and dropped off the ships, the Tempest along with them and then went away in a flash. Commander Do Xeel's ship positioned itself at the head of the formation and sent a message to all ships to prepare for arrival.

The Kett Fleet was composed of fighters shaped like a tailbone with the drives at the back and cruisers shining a dull waxy green, ovoid with protrusions like legs near the slightly bigger back and guns studding its body aside from the two running on its length. All of this made it look like fat, hairy caterpillars floating around the planet cocooned in ice.

Barring obstacles, a powerful telescope can see billions of light-years away so approaching objects cannot be hidden. The Angara knew the general direction of their enemy, but their enemy didn't know what direction the attack will come from or when. Even with powerful telescopes, the observing stations cannot watch the whole universe or distinguish the light of ships which were fainter compared to suns. The Angaran fleet was provided information with the orbits of the stations and the composition of the Kett fleet simply by focusing their telescopes on that direction. Though they don't know each ship's exact location, their patrol patterns gave the Angaran navigators enough data to guess where they will be for their gunners to use during the opening salvo.

The fleet then went closer and closer to the system by popping behind massive suns or planets, stopping only to let their FTL drives cool down until they can jump again. When near enough, they dropped out of FTL approaching from above, below and sides of the planet's orbital plane to surround the Kett fleet and minimize hitting the base directly. When the Kett fleet was in range, the vanguard jumped into FTL and decelerated, releasing missiles as they sped past the planet to stop at the other side. Some of the missiles hit the Kett ships who were just starting to orient themselves. Some of it missed, but fortunately, the satellites orbiting the planet were hit and destroyed them. As the vanguard flipped back to hide their main thruster and face the enemy counter-fire with their front where their armor and shields were strongest, the second group zipped past, releasing missiles at the Kett ships who were oriented towards the vanguard group. The other groups followed using the same pattern, reaching their post as the Kett finally realized what they were doing and abandoned orienting on each new arrival and instead went into a defensive formation. The Angaran fleet also moved into their attack pattern, moving in a starburst to confound the enemy's targeting and spreading to surround them while maintaining distance for mutual defense.

The Kett fleet then clustered into a defensive formation, moving to evade shots coming from all directions and also in a way to prevent a lucky Angaran ship from appearing in their middle and attacking them from behind. As their main guns ran the length of their ship and not omnidirectional, they had to orient them towards the Angaran ships to counter them but with this, they also risk exposing their sides to the others which will have more accurate shots due to the wider target. Since they can use the planet to defend from attack from behind, some Kett ships went immediately into FTL, before the Angaran Fleet could surround them, and return to attack from behind. Thus, the formation of the Fleet changed from abreast to spherical, with frigates moving behind and facing back to guard the flanks.

As the Kett fired at them, the ships move to evade targeting in a spiral motion, not laterally which would slow it down unlike the former due to using opposing thrust to change direction. Surprisingly, the potato-shaped ships were very agile in evading shots due to the thrusters that studded their body.

Both fleets will aim to pick off ships one by one by concentrating fire on it. However, as their formations are only as strong as their weakest link, they will change their formation so as to protect more of their badly damaged ships. Both fleets will count on that change so their tactics included predicting each other's movements along with the accuracy of their information (same) and the relative strength of their fleet (the Kett have slightly better armor). For now, the Angara has the advantage due to their initial sudden attack and their position, which gives them more freedom to maneuver.

Unbeknown to him, the carriers that dropped out midway to the location were encircling the area in a random pattern with a cache of missiles and to collect heat from the ships, as each fighter was fitted with detachable sinks to trap heat generated from the battle. As the battle was happening near a star, the build-up of heat would be faster and time would be a constraint. The fighters were provided with the carriers' locations and would occasionally withdraw from the battle to go to them to replace their sinks with new ones or replenish their missiles and return, thus able to fight longer and maybe win simply by outlasting their enemy.

So, the Angara's battle plan was this: Destroy the satellites around the planet and if possible, prevent the ships leaving the area to summon reinforcements. They assumed that reinforcements will be informed as soon as they arrived as they could not tell which of the ships had QEC or if the base had it.

Back at the cargo bay, Scott, Marcus, and Cora watched the battle via a projection with SAM helpfully gave them a play by play of the battle, the distances scaled to the millimeter, showing them who hit this ship or that based on data the Tempest's sensors receive. On their way to the planet, Commander Do Xeel said to them, "The destroyer is about an hour away so whatever you do down there, finish it quickly." The Tempest, without being tasked with either defending or attacking, went around the battlefield at the back of the fleet to travel to the side of the planet opposite the base. With their stealth technology, they were able to enter the atmosphere of the planet and moved to the mesosphere. Then the Tempest swerved, so it was moving forward with its rear. Then Kallo went on the line to inform them that they're in the drop zone.

They stopped watching and turned off the projection, focusing on the matter at hand. The three soldiers checked on their armor, ensuring that their jump jets were working and have enough juice. They also checked on their parachutes, just in case there was a malfunction midair. They also performed checks on their weapons. Finally, Scott told Kallo on the intercom that they were ready, and their pilot answered them to standby for decompression. The cargo bay began to bleed the air and pressure level inside the hull out into the night until both had equalized. Then they pressed against the wall beside the cargo bay doors, holding to the netting, waiting for Kallo's signal. A few minutes later, the door opened, and they stared out into thousands of feet of rushing black air. Holding onto the ropes on either side, they shuffled to the very edge of the ramp and looked at the lights on each side of the gaping aperture.

Scott signaled for them to go now. Marcus and Cora turned on one heel, facing into the dark abyss and jumped, arms apart, faces down. Scott was about to follow them when Jaal called him back. He looked back and saw the Angara behind the glass on the corridor to the cargo bay, looking at him with wonder and great disbelief.

"You're insane," he said.

Scott just smiled at him then threw himself overboard and into the air. He was still smiling as he plummeted and joined his companions, dreaming to replicate the Angara's expression to every one of his people who doubted them. Scott had one last glimpse of the Tempest going up and out of sight of the nearest Kett ship peeking from the horizon before he flipped towards the planet. Their suits then began to oscillate their shields to minimize friction with the air. Stabilizing their fall position, they dropped through the stratosphere and finally the troposphere and below. The sky was clear, the stars visible, black shapes of mountains rushed upward on all sides until the base was in sight. They could see the ring of the wall and then the tower, looming tall over it all. Three thousand feet passed by and they showed no sign of stopping, growing closer and closer to their destination.

Scott waited for the shots to come if the Kett were more suspicious and not enjoying the sight of people plummeting to their death. He knew if they decided to blow them up instead, their death would be instantaneous. The mass accelerated projectile, meant for ships, would rip them into pieces and cook the remains. Or they'll die by laser, their body turning into charred husks if it had not vaporized immediately upon contact. He thought morbidly that if the Kett wants a taste for human meat, they need only go outside and spread their hands and they'll receive a meal like manna from heaven.

At five hundred, they were luckily on the path towards the transmitter. If they hadn't, they would have adjusted by using their jump jets and that would have alerted the Kett. Or they'll have to accept flying past their target and landing somewhere then disable the transmitter some other way with the Kett probably at their heels. He knew this technique was supposed to be used to land them not on the target itself, but since approaching from the land was slower, this would have to do. With ten minutes to decelerate, Scott signaled to Cora and they hook themselves on both sides of Marcus and waited for five before activating their biotic field.

Part of the perks of was the ability to have biotics even if they were not born with it. It was not true biotics; his ability was merely the power of ships to create a barrier and accelerate his speed, scaled to a person's size. So, he won't be making singularities anytime soon. Through his implants, SAM was coordinating with and making the minute adjustments to his suit's micro-emitters to mimic biotics.

They floated down the platform, nearly missing the edge, and then quickly ran to the center column, heart hammering in their chests at their lucky escape but now confident that the Kett won't shoot them without destroying the transmitter too. They knew they had minutes before the Kett probably watching see them, board their gunships and a second for them to arrive and shoot at them. They quickly unpacked the bombs from their pack. Scott handed one to Cora and she charged to the other side as he and Marcus strapped theirs on the base of the column between the platforms. They then ran towards each other then, holding each other's hands, they quickly jumped off. He and Cora made a barrier around them and as they fell, they saw the ground illuminated for a brief second before the air rippled and a strong wind buffeted them away with a roar. He looked back to see the tower splitting in half, its pieces falling.

As they flew, Scott tapped on his omni-tool. "The transmitter's down. I repeat, the transmitter's down," he said into it, hoping that the Tempest received it and passed it on to their allies. They pulled each other closer. Cora once said that these barriers were strong enough to withstand direct hits from ships. Their barrier might hold the first shot, but not the second, third or the subsequent shots.

Is this how we die? he thought as they fell through the air, the snowy landscape of the Kett base before them. He already had died but not as clear-headed like this before. There was no struggle, no sense of peace, only the long and slightly boring wait for the strike to come. They'd die instantly of course, but would they still be conscious, like a ghost hanging around to see as their body fell into pieces? Would they have seconds of awareness as pieces of their body burned towards the earth? Would they feel the air become so still as a flash of light shone on the ground then erupt into huge mushroom clouds of dust and…smoke?

Yes, smoke, because he realized the ground below is being bombarded from orbit.

He was about to yell and shake his fist, exhilarated to be alive when the air rippled and gave a sharp, violent scream and the shock waves sent them sharply flying. Then another one exploded and another and another, buffeting them uncontrollably until they screamed. They did not notice their bubble land through the haze and bounced. The barrier burst on impact due to their shock and they rolled to the ground. Scott yelled for his companions and them also for him, crawling towards each other over the heaving ground and the deafening explosions. The air was choked with dust but there was a collapsed shed nearby and they staggered to it. Cora produced another barrier and they huddled together as the ground shook and the explosions thundered around them. Scott opened his omni-tool to contact the Tempest and yelled their location, asking them not to bomb them. He barely heard Kallo's answer as another roar ripped through and soil showered over them, hot air sweeping in and fizzling against their barrier.

They could do nothing but wait for it to be over. Scott curled in a fetal position, helpless, unable to do anything but cower in terror.

* * *

AN: This chapter is the hardest part for me to write (mostly because of the physics involved) so thanks to szierera for helping me on my grammar, spelling, lore, science and overall coherence of this fic. If you still find the physics here as wonky, don't blame the beta. He did his best but I insisted.


	20. Chapter 20

Someone was shaking him awake. He opened his eyes and saw Cora beside him, gibbering something, her face pale. He looked to their side where he saw Marcus taking watch on the open hole on a wall, his back to them.

Everything was deathly still. Past the open hole, the air was cloudy with dust and smoke, rolling through the plain undisturbed, seeping in through the broken walls and fallen roofs. There were dull reports of gunfire somewhere beyond it, but he did not startle. His mind was clouded as the scene before him, with only one thing clear.

The bombing was over and they were alive.

He slowly uncurled, feeling as if it was ages since he last used his limbs. They felt heavy like they were made of lead but oddly weak, like jelly.

"Finally, you're awake," Marcus said without turning around, his eyes scanning alertly for enemies. "I was afraid you'd given yourself a heart attack."

"Sorry," Scott stammered. He must have been yelling his head off.

"S'okay. Keeping it in would've killed you. Besides, no one would have heard it from the bombs. The Angara sure were very thorough," he said and then gestured for them to join him. "Come, take a look."

He crouched toward him with wobbly legs and peeked through the hole. The landscape was unrecognizable from the last time they have seen it. What was supposed to be a base with snow-covered buildings sprouting like mushrooms now looked like a wasteland, with the ground dark with soot and uneven due to the craters. There were fires burning on buildings that survived and the air was thick with smoke. In the distance, they heard gunfire from Angaran ships hovering in the air, hunting survivors. Then, they heard a dull beating of the air above them. They shrank back deep to the shadows, but the clouds above them parted and revealed that they had nothing to worry about.

He smiled at the sweet sight of the Tempest coming towards them.

The ship descended on the clear ground before them and swerved so its bow faced them. Then its landing gear touched the ground, followed by the cargo bay doors opening.

They smiled at each other and emerged from their hiding place, walking towards the ship where their companions disembarked and gave them a hug. Jaal came by, beaming with pride and when he reached him, he put his forearm in front of him. He grinned and gestured the same way, elated at being permitted to use their greeting.

They dropped their arms. "What happened at the ship…you falling into the air without a thought….it was amazing," the Angara said, the stars bright in his eyes.

Scott grinned at him. Until now, it seems the Angara just couldn't get over what happened. "Yes, isn't it? I never forget the times when we do that."

Jaal chuckled. "Who would've thought throwing yourselves from the sky would work?"

He shrugged. "It's standard procedure for us back at our galaxy."

Drack came over and lightly punched him in the chest. He laughed heartily at each of them and said, "Well done, you bunch of grunts. You've proved you've got quads on you."

"I'm female," Cora piped up.

Drack turned to her. "Honorary balls," he said with a tip of his head and continued. "I've done a lot of crazy shit back in the day but not this crazy."

"You should have come with us, big guy," Marcus said to him with a grin.

"What? To make a bigger crater?" Scott quipped, gesturing at the nearby depression. He wasn't just trying to be witty; he was pointing out that this sort of tactic required finesse, not force, something even a veteran Krogan lacked.

They all laughed, Drack as well. "Haha. I'll let this pass this time, you uppity runt," he said.

Commander Heckt's ship arrived at their location. The commander disembarked and walked towards them with some of her crew. She dressed in her battle suit with a wickedly sharp crest on her helmet and boots that let her walk easily over the flat ground. She spoke to them with a warmer tone than they have heard her last. "I am glad you survived."

No shit, Scott thought. Not after you've tried to bomb the shit out of us. "Glad to see you too. I take it you won the battle up there?"

She nodded. "The Kett fleet had retreated. But they will be back. For now, Commander Do Xeel will keep watch and warn us should they return." She nodded to the main facility, which was untouched. "But this is not over yet. The Moshae is still captive and the Kett on the way. We must hurry."

"Right," Scott said, clutching his gun. His teams' support brought back his feelings once again and his whole body was working perfectly, pumped and ready to fulfill their mission. He looked at his companions and asked if Cora and Marcus were still up for it. They nodded.

The Angara provided them with the picture of the Moshae and a vid of Commander Heckt telling her to trust whoever was bearing it. That done, they followed the commander up the snowy hill.

The main door of the facility was clamped shut and one group of Angara were trying to open it by a cutting torch while gunships whirled around it. There were great blast marks on its surface. They must have used the gunships to blow a hole through, but the doors were stronger than they thought. She led them past the group and onto a great pentagonal tunnel at the side of the facility which opened into a vent with giant grills. Her people worked on the edges of the grills and cut them silently away until the hole was big enough for them to squeeze through. They emerged onto a dark tunnel with surface green and dark as poison. The walls curved in the ceiling in segments, widening in the middle like the inside of entrails, then narrowing into supports ribbed like a spine. Pipes ran on the side of the walls, sinuous and overlapping, just like the passages wounding through the base.

As they walked swiftly but silently through the tunnels, they felt as if they were delving deeper into the belly of a beast.

They stalked deeper into the base, alert at every corner and watching each other's back until they saw a light at one end of the corridors. Commander Heckt pointed at it and they moved into position silently. She was at one side of the vent and gestured to him. He positioned himself at the other side and peeked in.

The passage opened into a wide room full of consoles with Kett working over them, barking at each other while a large projection of a Kett loomed over it. There were two levels, the top with curved railings on the edges and partitions on the walls and up the sloped ceiling which looked like gills. The alarms were on and the Kett was alert for any covert attack, patrolling the area with their disfigured dogs. This might be their command center.

Commander Heckt silently surveyed the area, marking the positions of the Kett and observing their patterns then signaled him to move back and her team to get closer. She tapped at one and nodded, then one by one, they vanished.

Not completely. There were distortions on the edges of their outline that made them still visible in close range, but imperceptible at long ones. He saw them drop silently down the room, their commander keeping watch as they moved into position.

Then one of the dogs raised its head to their direction and growled.

Commander Heckt raised her gun and fired at the most important one in the room. It toppled then the room erupted in pandemonium. The Angara who managed to sneak closer immediately stabbed their prey from behind while the others leaped out the tunnel, guns blazing. The Kett was too shocked at the sight of a beefy Angara firing in mid-air and so did not fire back until it was too late; the Angara have taken cover before the Kett could react.

Scott and his team waited until the Angara below them caught the Kett's attention, then dropped out the vent and into cover. They covered the group as the Angara leaped over consoles and crates, lunging from position to position. One of them was below the second level with a Kett firing from the cover above him, shooting those trying to come up the stairs. He leaped up, then holding onto the curved ridge at the bottom with his feet to hold himself up, stretched up and snatched the barrel peeking out the railing and pulled its owner over it and down onto the floor. They turned over in mid-air until the Kett ended up on its stomach with a foot over its face while the Angara above him wrenched its gun free of its grasp and threw it away. The gun clattered over the floor while the Angara used his own gun to shoot it dead.

When it was over, the commander walked among her group. "Status!" she shouted. None of them were killed though some are wounded but not badly. Satisfied, she turned to Scott. "We'll stay here and coordinate taking control of the base. Some of our people will pour in from the hole we just created, while Anno brings down the barrier and open the main doors. We'll search the base in teams." She looked at Anno, who gave a signal that he was finished hacking the network. A door opened and some Angara waved goodbye to the commander then went through. Another one opened and she pointed at it. "Your way lies there."

Scott nodded. "Stay in contact. And good luck." He then led his team into the opened passage. SAM guided them to paths with few Kett about and away from the ones with Kett rushing through to counter the Angara pouring in from the outside. They pushed forward until they arrived at a chamber with a viewing window at one side of the wall. They crept across the dark floor covered in bumps like ringworm infested skin to take cover on the other side.

"Decontaminating. Standby," SAM said as it hacked the doors.

"Decontamination? What for?" Scott asked them, his back to the wall, his head turned to watch the room through the window.

"Maybe the Kett are germaphobes," Marcus suggested, standing before the door, his back to the wall, similarly hiding from anyone in the next room.

"I sure hope so," Scott answered. If they were, maybe they could scare them easily simply by threatening to breathe on them.

SAM was finished and they entered into a corridor with many passages. They chose one and followed it to its end. They passed through rooms with beds and chambers full of pods which SAM identified as for stasis. There was also a room with desks facing the wall around the room and a table and chairs for a conference.

They arrived at a chamber with a big window beyond them with a raised platform before it, where the Kett was working on consoles. There were two doors on both sides of the room. When the door opened, the Kett looked up from their work and saw them. They yelled but Scott and his team had the advantage of surprise and they gunned them down before they could raise their guns. They left them slumped over their desks, green blood flowing over the pulsing interface and went to the window to see what made the Kett so preoccupied.

Below was a great hall, with a giant statue of a Kett at one end, still and serene as if in a chrysalis. There were pods hanging on a line around it snaking from an opening on the wall behind the statue, going down the floor and up into another opening. Below, a group of Kett was assembled with one ahead of the rest. It was clad in maroon armor with a stiff, big collar going up from the chest and around the back of its neck and coat split into two tails at the back.

The line snaked down until it reached the level and the lids of the pods opened like scarab wings. A group of five Angara emerged into view, walking towards the pods and then stopped in front of the Kett in maroon. As they walked, the Kett formed lines on both sides as if to give the Angara honor.

What the fuck is going on here? Scott thought as they moved on both sides of the window and peeked at the scene.

"Fortunate welcome", the Kett in maroon said to the Angara before it. "Step forward. I am humbled before you. You who are chosen. Chosen by the Archon. Chosen to be exalted."

"Chosen to be exalted," the Kett repeated, crossing their arms over their chest.

The Angara then walked past the Kett and entered the pods, the doors closing behind them.

"What is this?" Jaal hissed beside him as he also looked at the sight of his people submitting to their enemy without protest. "Why aren't they resisting?"

"They appear to be in some kind of trance," Marcus suggested, drawing from his experiences with rescues. "Or just disoriented. Sleep-deprived, maybe. Drugs could also make them stop resisting and obey mindlessly."

Jaal snarled at the scene but he calmed down. He peered down again at the group of Angara below and searched each face. "I know the Moshae, she isn't down there," he concluded. Jaal pointed behind the group at other pods. "Maybe in one of those pods. But we have to save those below ."

"We need to find the Moshae, quickly," Scott said. "She's our first priority."

Jaal stared at him then moved close. "Your priority," he hissed, his voice low, his eyes glittering.

Scott looked at him, slightly irritated. If they were to save them, it would slow them down and maybe the Kett will move the Moshae into a more secure area. He was about to answer and stare him down if need be when the Angara team piped in. "Alien, where are you?" the Angara team leader, Owwin, asked.

"We're at a room before a chamber with a gathering of your people and surrounded by Kett," he answered. I don't see any path we can use to get down there except breaking the glass in front of us and jumping down two floors up."

"I see. We are at a lower level just beside the room and seeing the same. We are going to save our people. Are you going to join us?"

"We don't know where the Moshae is and they might move her somewhere else after this," Scott answered, hoping hard Owwin was more prudent than Jaal.

There was a pause on the other line then Owwin answered. "Very well. We'll save the people here while you continue on and find the Moshae. We'll catch up later."

"Got it. Good luck," Scott said and closed the line. Without looking back to Jaal, he nodded to the door. They emerged into a corridor with doors on either side. They cautiously opened each but they all led to more passages with no identifications of the rooms they were leading to. Without a map to the base, they decided to randomly choose a path to follow.

The tunnel was dark and its twists and turns hid its end. They peeked around corners before moving forward, trying not to remember their hands touching the walls that felt like some malformed gullet. As time passed with the end nowhere in sight, the fear of having chosen the wrong door mounted and they started to consider that maybe they were lost.

They moved past the bend and saw they reached the other end. They moved quickly in relief and opened the door.

It seemed that they have arrived at some sort of medical bay. It was empty, except for a lone female Angara at one of the tables. Wires and tubes were wrapped around her body like a spider's web, connected to a console that beeped softly beside her. They cautiously approached her, sweeping the room. They reached the end of the room and saw nothing dangerous. Marcus stationed himself before the door at the other end while they inspect her. Scott reached her side and opened his omnitool to scan her.

"She's alive," he said, noticing at the woman's soft breathing through a respirator. But the light on her skin has an eerie steady glow unlike Jaal's softly blinking ones and her half-lidded eyes were staring at the ceiling, apparently oblivious to them.

Jaal went to her side. "Sister! Can you hear us?"

The woman did not answer. But she started blinking rapidly.

"Pathfinder, I'm detecting increased heartbeat and hormone levels from her. It is possible that she may have understood Jaal, but cannot reply," SAM said.

"Cannot reply?"

"Yes. From your scans, I can see surgical scarring in her brainstem. This would have stopped her vital functions and killed her, but the fact that she is still alive, although through mechanical means, shows that she may have lost conscious motor control."

"Lost conscious motor-you mean she's paralyzed?" Cora asked, moving closer and looked at her with her mouth parted in shock.

"Yes. Thus, she may not be able to speak. However, her neurological activity is monitored on the console beside her. I can scan it and interpret it for you."

"You mean if she can't speak, you can scan her brain and make her speak through you?" Scott asked.

"Correct. Shall I attempt it?"

"Then do it," he instructed.

"Connecting. Please stand by." They waited for SAM to finish.

_"What is happening? Who are you?"_ the woman asked, speaking through SAM's voice. Jaal went forward and clasped her hand. "Your brother is here. You are safe now," he assured her.

Tears started dripping from her eyes. "It is too late for that now."

"Tell us what happened here," Scott asked gently.

At that, the monitors started beeping and the woman's eyes rolled up. SAM spoke in its normal pattern. "Pathfinder, I'm detecting elevated stress levels and increasing abnormal brain activity. If this continues, it may lead to a stroke."

"What should we do?" Scott said as he moved to the med console.

"I'll highlight the ones you need to get her vital signs to normal." Scott followed SAM's instructions and tapped the buttons to administer her medications. After a few minutes, she was breathing normally again.

Unable to ask her directly what happened, Scott signaled them to look around. Cora started scanning the medical equipment which SAM said was for in vitro fertilization. Then she scanned the woman herself. There were signs of trauma on her lower region. "Scott, the scans were telling me that the woman had given birth recently. And that she has extensive bed sores on her back." Cora stopped scanning when she put it all together. The equipment, her condition, and her injury…

"Oh shit," she cursed, looking at the Angara in horror as she realized what it all meant.

They also went silent when they discovered what they have done to her. Then Scott turned back to her. "SAM, is the damage to her reversible?"

"I am not certain. We have the technology and medical skills to reverse paralysis due to damage in the spinal cord but no one has attempted it on the brain stem."

"That's good enough. We'll take that chance." To the Angara, he said, "We're going to get you out of here."

_"No."_

Scott paused. "No?"

_"No. Kill me instead."_

Scott looked at the others for support. They too were unsure what to do, even Jaal. "It's alright. You're going to be fine," he tried to assure her. "We're taking you back to your home and family. We can heal you. You'll be able to talk and walk again."

_"No. Kill me,"_ she insisted, the monitors beeping louder again.

"I know what you've been through and I understand. It's not your fault. If the memories are too much to remember...we can help you forget. Forget it all. You can start a new life."

Her lids drooped. A tear beaded in a corner of her eye and slid. _"No. You think merely forgetting will undo _what had been done_ to me. You are wrong. There is nothing for me after this. I do not want to live after this."_ She blinked. _"Help me. Please. I am tired; I have enough of living."_

"I don't want to do that."

Tears welled up in her eyes. _"Kill me."_ The tears fell, from her cheek down onto the table cold, hard table. _"Please."_

Scott looked at her, gazing deeply into those eyes which, without words, had made him understand the extent of her wish. The pain as she gave life, unable to scream, unable to move and know afterward where they would be sent for. How the Kett invaded her body and appropriated its gifts for their own foul use. They have done all that while she can only do nothing but wish for death. For release.

"As you wish," he said, drawing his pistol and pointing it at her temple. "I'm sorry," he said to her.

Her eyes glittered. _"Thank you,"_ she said, then Scott pulled the trigger.


	21. Chapter 21

There was a small silence after the gunshot then, Jaal started screaming. His body started glowing and then bolts arced inside the room, short-circuiting the equipment. The sound of consoles exploding accompanied his howls.

Meanwhile, the others kept well away from him and conferred among themselves what to do now as Jaal raged.

"I don't know what to expect here but we may find something worse," Scott said to them calmly. "Jaal may not able to handle it. Should we leave him with the other team and somewhere safe while we go rescue the Moshae?"

Jaal heard that and stormed towards Scott. He flung Marcus away when he tried to block him and grabbed Scott by the throat, pinning him against the wall. The others started yelling for Jaal to drop him, Marcus butting his back with the point of his rifle but Jaal ignored them.

"How can you stand there and talk calmly when you know what they do to my people?" Jaal accused him, the grip on his throat through the armor weave tightening. "You have no feeling in you. You are like the Kett who does not care that my people suffer as long as you get what you want! Why? Why should I trust you when nothing you do is out of compassion but on what you can gain as if our lives are things for you to gamble on?"

Scott waved Cora and Marcus to stay back and wait, which they did reluctantly. Then he looked at Jaal, whose color showed he was seconds away from a thousand-volt experience. "I'm really sorry for your people," he gasped. "But we have to save the Moshae and stop this. We have to go on as clear as possible, even if we are grieving because that's the only way we can stop the Kett. They don't care for our anger or our grief, but we'll make them feel it. But only if we stick to our plan and not let our feelings overwhelm us!"

Jaal did not answer but kept staring at him with his hand on his neck. Scott stared back at him, wary of the color on his skin and alert for change of its brightness while trying to keep his breathing under control, preparing for the moment to spring his barrier if it came to worse. Soft beeps of alarm sounded in his helmet but he ignored that just as much as he ignored the movement of Cora and Marcus on the foreground, moving into position to take Jaal out if he decided not to trust him after all. He kept his eyes on Jaal, willing him silently to trust him.

The light from Jaal moved like light from underneath running water then it went out and Jaal unclasped his hand from his neck, dropping him.

The jolt from the impact to the floor made him gasp and cough. He saw Jaal's feet before him turn and walk away, followed by the soft whisk of his rofjnn's hem. He felt hands underneath his arms, pulling him up to a standing position with Cora and Marcus on both sides of him.

Scott coughed a few more times then looked up at Jaal, whose back was to him. "I'm sorry Jaal. I really am," he rasped.

Jaal sobbed then whipped around to face him. "We could have saved her! We could have taken her away from this place."

"Saving her is not the point," Scott said. "It was her choice. You knew what they did to her. What she suffered. You heard her say no even if we said that we'll find a way to cure her. Do you really want to ignore her will after all she'd been through? After the Kett ignored her will over their own? If we saved her despite her wish for our own sense of what we wish for her, then are we really any different from the Kett?"

"She was in pain. She couldn't have been thinking clearly."

"Yes, she was in pain. But there are some pain that cannot be lived with." He stepped closer slowly to Jaal. "I had only given her dignity back after so many years without it. In the last moment of her life, she lived as she was supposed to be. As a being of her own right. Her own choice."

Jaal looked conflicted at him. Still angry, part disbelief, part hope.

"We're going to stop this," Scott vowed. "We're going to make the Kett pay. And we're going to save the Moshae."

Jaal looked hard back at him for a long time.

"We have to do this. You have to do this. You have to stop this from happening to her. For the Moshae."

Jaal slowly dropped his eyes. "She's too old to bear children," he said shortly, but he squared his shoulders and said, "Let's go." He passed him by to go back to the passage where they had come from before.

SAM piped up with the coordinates, so Scott led them out and further into the base. They entered a room divided by pillars running up the ceiling, with each section hung clusters of pods like ant eggs on lines passing through holes in the walls. One of the lines moved and pods came in and out as if on a production line at a factory. They scanned each one but the Moshae wasn't there. Owwin called in and informed them that they won the battle at the chamber but the leader escaped. He told them to expect some people. Grimly, Jaal ignored the sight while they set a command at the console to return the pods back to the chamber.

SAM showed a path where it thought that the central chamber may be and where the Moshae may likely be found, is the most secure location. As they jogged through the passage, Scott could not forget the memory of the medical bay and the woman there. It was ghastly, but he had to focus on the right things. For instance, the missing babies. Where did they go? What had the Kett done to them?

Dread was pressing around him like the walls of the hallway.

At the next room, they emerged onto a walkway built up over the hall, nearly touching the ceiling. There was a wriggling mass of something below them, something foul and evil due to the stench that hung heavy in the air. Scott looked over the railing to look and nearly retched. The wriggling, whirling mass was a mess of bodies. Angaran bodies, penned in cages, naked and dirty and mired in their own decomposing shit. The captives turned their heads towards the sound, saw them and started screeching.

"Hello?" Scott called below. "Are you alright? Don't worry; we're friends, we're going to get you out of here."

They only screeched in answer to him. Scott drew back, perplexed, as the cacophony mounted when those from the other pens joined. He looked to the others and they stared back at him just as confused. Haltingly, he opened his omnitool and scanned the Angara and the tanks.

"Pathfinder. Based on cursory observation, the Angara below you seem to be adults," SAM said. "Upon further analysis, I conclude that they are only a few years old. I detect recent injection sites on their skin and their size may be due to accelerated muscle growth. I also add that there is also a presence of growth hormones in the tanks which is full of enriched feed."

"Growth hormones?" Cora repeated then gasped in horror. "They-they were farming people?" she grimaced and turned away from the sight. "Ugh, I'm going to be sick."

By now, the hall rang with their shrieks. They banged on their pens and shook them as they screamed, which made Scott realize that the noise would alert the Kett to their location. He quickly signaled for them to move and pushed Jaal ahead.

"Jaal! Don't look! Just go, go! We'll think about them later," Scott said, urgently ushering the Angara forward to the exit. The room felt endless as they ran and as he ran he thought repeatedly to himself to go to the door, go to the door as the screeching intensified and their eyes followed them, screeching at them to look at them, screeching at them give them food, screeching and screeching and-oh, god, it does not stop. His eyes did not waver at the door as he pushed Jaal forward until they reached the door. They closed it immediately and did not speak, refusing to give thought to what they have seen, and instead watch Jaal warily as the Angara's breaths became labored, struggling to stamp down his rage. Scott opened his omnitool and contacted Commander Heckt. "Commander! have you seen this?" he said and sent a small picture of the pens. The line crackled and they heard gunshots and sounds of exploding electrical equipment.

"Yes!" the commander shouted among the howls permeating the line. "We've seen the-the breeding chamber," she spat. "Oh my brothers and sisters. Stars! The skutting Kett-"

An explosion drowned out her words, sizzling and angry then they heard the yells of the Angara as they found their kin. The line crackled with the cacophony of rage for a few minutes before the commander returned. "I have to go! I have to calm my people and remind them what they were here for! Alien, we can't reach the Moshae in time! You'll have to go on without us!"

With that, she cut the line and they were left standing in silence.

"C'mon! You heard her," Scott rallied his team. "We're the only ones now who can save the Moshae". They nodded. Jaal too, though not without great effort and so continued on through the base.

As they jogged from room to room, Scott thought that everything became stranger and stranger as it became more horrifying. Why do they need to grow them? he asked silently, resisting the urge to gag as he remembered the pens. As he thought, he became more and more apprehensive at what lies beyond the doors, expecting some fresh new horror the Kett had devised.

They reached another decontamination chamber and peeked in the dark room next door.

Light poured in from above illuminating the circular chamber, dark as a wasp's nest dipped in tar. At the center, two naked Angara were standing with their back to them before a Kett wearing deep green robes, holding a vial of goo as dark as poison. It examined the face of the Angara before it reached its hand out to the Angara's face and turned his head from side to side.

"SAM, how's the door?" Scott asked as they hid while watching the scene beyond them.

"Hacking in progress. Please standby," the AI answered.

"Well, hurry up!"

"Noted, Pathfinder."

They turned their attention back to the room. The Kett seemed satisfied with its examination and then plunged the syringe in the Angara.

The Angara screamed and started seizing. Black veins appeared on his skin, causing it to turn black in its wake, like a poison river running on the delta after the first storm. Then something erupted on the surface, growing hard, white and bony like-

Like the Kett.

He was turning into a Kett.

They looked in horror as they saw the familiar face of their enemy from where their ally once stood.

"No!" Jaal shouted and started smashing the window. But the glass was impervious even to his Angaran strength. The Kett turned around at the sound and saw him trying to smash his way through. It barked orders to surround them then plunged another syringe in the other Angara.

At this time, SAM finished hacking the door. Marcus threw a grenade at the advancing Kett. As the Kett ducked to cover, they moved into the room, guns blazing as they found their own cover.

Meanwhile, the leader barked orders to drag the neophytes away from the room, keeping itself immobile long enough for Scott to put a bullet between its eyes. With their leader dead, the Kett scattered in all directions, paying no attention to the transforming Angara. Cora kept them occupied with her charges and shotgun and Marcus' grenades made them duck from cover to cover, which made it easy for Scott and Jaal to pick them off one by one.

When the room was cleared, they rushed to the center of the room where the two Angara lay sprawled. Unfortunately, the first one had completely transformed. They looked at it, hesitating, unsure if his condition can be reversed but the Kett snarled and tried to pick up a weapon form its fallen brethren. They had to put it down. Meanwhile, the other one was still fighting the transformation, rolling on the floor and screaming.

They went over to keep him still while Cora hang back and looked over her medical program for possible treatments.

"Pathfinder, I'm detecting a rapid and aggressive genetic editing happening within him," SAM informed them.

"Rapid what?" Scott asked sharply as they hold on to the Angara's limbs. Genetic editing is commonplace to them but even they don't do it directly on a patient, or do it as fast as this. The Angara jerked and he shook his head. "Nevermind. Is there any way we can stop that?"

"One moment," SAM answered as it searched on the facility's databanks. "Currently, I cannot detect any equipment nor any information in the facility's databanks to reverse the process nor stop his transformation. However, stopping all metabolic processes may halt its progress and give us time to find a solution."

Scott tutted irritably after he looked around the room. "We don't have a cryo-pod here and I don't remember passing one!"

"There must be one we did not pass by," Marcus suggested, holding onto the feet. "SAM, search the base again and find if there's any cryo-facility around."

"Acknowledged."

"Wait," Jaal said across from Scott. "An intense electrical shock may temporarily stop it. Get back," he ordered.

Scott looked confused at him. "How does shocking him stop it if-"

"I'll explain Angaran physiology later but you have to get back, now!"

Scott let go of the arm and quickly drew back as Jaal put his hand on the squirming Angara and delivered a shock. He did it a few more times before the Angara relaxed.

Jaal stopped and the Angara before him sobbed.

"Are you alright?" they asked him. The Angara was holding his head tightly between his hands so Jaal moved closer to comfort him when his hand suddenly reached out and drew his pistol.

"Woah. Put that down!" Scott ordered, drawing his rifle. The Angara had already scrambled up and was now backing away as they pointed their guns at him. He looked at them with fear and pointed his weapon wildly at them then at Jaal, who was standing between them with his arms out as he slowly stood up.

"Get out of my head!" he yelled.

"We're not hallucinations! We're real!" Scott told him.

"Scott," Cora warned, her biotics flicked up over her body while she kept her gun trained at the Angara. Scott was about to signal her to do it, to make a barrier between them when Jaal spoke. "Wait." He walked forward slowly to the Angara while talking gently. "Do you know me?" he asked, ignoring Scott's irritated snort that they could talk to him as much as he likes after they secure him behind a barrier.

The man blinked at him. "Brother," he said in relief then his face twisted in hate and he dropped to his knees. "No! He is unenlightened! he is not-ARGH!" he screamed in agony. "I AM THE CHOSEN. I AM CHOSEN TO FULFILL OUR DESTINY. I AM NO BROTHER TO YOU," he screamed, then keened. "There are voices in my head, telling me that I am someone I'm-hgh-not. They tell me that you're committing a sacrilege in infiltrating this holy place and that you should die. They're telling me to-hgh- to kill you! You're my brother not-hggh." He looked at Jaal in pain. "I don't want to kill you."

"Yes, I'm your brother. They are the Kett's illusions. Do not heed them."

The man caught the sight of the dark veins running up from his chest to his arms and all the way down to his body. He held his arm aloft, where it was quickly transforming into the bone and hide of the enemy they hated. Then he looked hopelessly at them. "I don't want to forget who I am," he pleaded.

"Then fight it! Do not give in to them! Do not let them win," Jaal encouraged. "Remember who you are. You are my brother. You are Angara."

The hand fell and the man stared at the floor, a hopeless look in his eyes. "Yes. I am Zafral Sorae. I was born on Suuricco of the Hundred Halos. I am a son of many mothers, brother to few and father to many. And I. Am. Angara." He put the gun inside his mouth and pulled the trigger.

Scott closed his eyes and bowed his head as the body started to fall and Jaal screamed. He caught him before he reached the floor and held him close as he cried.

Then the door opened and more Kett poured out. Scott yelled to take cover, but as soon as Jaal saw them, he glowed. He released his anger and started blasting the Kett with electricity. He no longer cared to fire his gun; he preferred to beat them to death with it or stab them with his knife. The Kett were beaten back momentarily with the surprise onslaught but they recovered and started surrounding him. As Jaal caught their attention, the others picked them off like leaves off a tree. All the Kett were dead, and the room went silent once more, the only sound a wet squelching of flesh as Jaal beat the head of the leader to a bloody pulp.

"Jaal!" Scott yelled but the Angara did not stop. Scott stomped forward and planted himself in front of Jaal, knowing his danger. "Jaal, stop! It's over. They're dead."

Jaal gave a final kick at the body before he completely stopped. He panted heavily as he looked at his handiwork. Scott laid a firm hand on his shoulder to make him turn to him. "Jaal, look at me." The Angara raised his eyes to him. "It's over now. Let's get you patched up." Jaal looked down at his body and saw it was full of bullet holes, some of it passing through his armor. He was so angry he forgot about the pain but now, it was coming back, dull drumming at first then became heavy and burning deep in the muscles. Wordlessly, he let Marcus treat him.

"The Moshae needs you," Scott reminded him gently. "She needs you to be calm. She needs you to think clearly."

"Yes," Jaal sobbed. Then he wiped the blood off his rifle and faced him with a determined look. "Stay strong, and clear," he said, reminding himself of the Angaran motto.

Scott nodded and released him. He looked at Marcus and Cora, who told him silently that they were ready then at Jaal. The Angara looked back at him as if he was his only hope and Scott promised him that he will not fail him.


	22. Chapter 22

From the chamber, they emerged into a hallway fashioned like a malformed ribcage pulled inside out and twisted sideways. Despite the macabre design, Scott noticed it was patched out or thin in places and some reminded him of bits of Angaran ships. They've encountered a few Kett stragglers and dropped them quickly. Scott stuck close to Jaal in case he jumped into the fray again but the Angara was silent and subdued, perhaps tired from before. They followed the path where SAM said was the fastest and safest way for them to reach the room where the Moshae was suspected to be held. As they jogged, thoughts of what happened in the rooms behind them returned, and Scott had to, unfortunately, revisit them as the leader of their group. He looked back on it, with the same sense of detachment he used when dealing with the death of his father.

Among the horrific scenes he's remembering, he found some answer to a question he had prior to entering the base. Did the Kett have communication to the place they came from? An answer to this question would change the way they would conduct themselves in this war later on. However, the fact that the Kett had to source their troops from the local population made it likely they didn't. There is still the possibility they can communicate to their homeworld, but that wouldn't matter much when they cannot get past the Shroud. The Angara may think this knowledge too little gain for its price, but for them, it changed their outlook entirely. The Kett could not get reinforcements from outside, which meant that if they cut them off their supply of troops, the war will be over simply by attrition.

However, if the Kett cannot get past the Shroud, then this also meant they were effectively stuck here...along with them.

He glanced at Jaal, who was slightly ahead, moving faster than them with his stalking gait, silent as a panther. It was tragic what was happening to his people and he agreed entirely that the Kett's method of warfare was extremely deplorable. Not just for the cruelty of it but for its senselessness. Any advanced society would know an army of drones is more efficient and effective in attaining its mission objective. People are irrational, emotional and had this pesky trait known as a conscience, and there is no better killing machine than a machine. A machine does not need to eat, shit or sleep and can go on killing indefinitely. Yet the Kett chose to create their soldiers from the Angara and with those horrific methods.

There were two possibilities: either the Kett has the same fear towards AI as they do or they are evil. Maybe both, the former making it convenient for the latter. Though he was taught not to think of evil on living beings purely because they are alien, he found it hard to stick to that instruction after what happened. Who wouldn't after seeing evidence of their brutality?

They finally reached the room. The chamber had a high ceiling with ramps before them and on the side. It was illuminated more brightly than the previous rooms. There were no wires running to and fro like the hallways they passed by and the floor was made of a material that did not sound with their footfall. The ramps lead on to the side of the room then down the stairs, where, at the end of the hall, a dais rose. As they went further in, they felt as if they were in a soundless, endless space, where the only thing of color was the great window behind the dais, with a simulation on it like colored glass showing a raised Kett figure, its arms spread and linked to other aliens who are likewise linked to another in infinity. That light was broken now, as a Kett leader with the maroon robes carried the female Angara onto the opening, onto snowy ground extending to the horizon and stopping abruptly into empty air.

Then a shuttle hovered down. They did not have time to waste.

"Moshae!" Jaal called and charged ahead. They ran after him as he fired upon the leader's guards flanking it, who quickly turned and closed ranks.

At the junction, Scott signaled at Marcus to follow Jaal as he and Cora went to the other one, while moving ahead and giving suppression fire. He reached railing and ducked behind its cover, while Marcus took up the role to give them time to move into position. He peeked and saw the leader was close to carrying the Moshae past the hole. He leaned out quickly, ignoring the beeping of his shield as the Kett guards hit him so he can shoot at the shuttle's thrusters. The thrusters caught fire and the shuttle careened away before the Leader could load the Moshae in it.

Meanwhile, Jaal vaulted over the railing and onto the ground and engaged the Kett in a melee. Cora followed after, her body glowing and she charged, throwing the Kett around him into the air before he dropped down and the Kett can concentrate their shots at him. She finished them off with her shotgun and grabbed at the Angara roughly to retreat and take cover behind the pillars, but Jaal resisted so she was forced to cover him with her barrier. The two covered them from above. Then Jaal chased the Kett out of cover by leaping and pouncing around them, almost impossible to track as he jumped against walls to attack the Kett on angles like a cheetah on steroids trapped in a box. His skin flickered and he disappeared only to appear and stab them behind their back or else sending arcs of electricity over them, throwing them across the room.

"Fight to the death! Protect this sacred place!" the leader yelled to its followers who were cowering, unable to decide whether to focus on the raging Angara bearing hard on them, the biotic moving on their side, or the two above picking them off as if they're clay pigeons.

Then Jaal shifted direction and was about to snatch the Moshae from the leader's grasp when it sent an expanding energy ball at him, throwing him back.

"You will not take her," it spat behind a bioelectrical shield. The Moshae was lying behind it. Jaal got up and hissed at it.

"Jaal, no!" Scott shouted as Jaal attempted to charge at it again but he was thrown onto the side as Cora charged onto him. The leader was attempting to summon another ball so they started firing upon it. Their bullets have no effect on its shield so its summoning continued. The Scott saw a tiny ball revolving around it and out of whim, started firing at it. The leader turned at him with a snarl.

Jaal stood up and shook himself off where he had fallen. He saw what they were doing, saw Scott fire upon the ball, saw the leader snarl at him and knew what to do. He pumped all of his rifle's bullets into the thing until it started to crack.

"NO!" It shouted and shot a streaming beam of energy at the Angara. But Cora leaped in its way and made a barrier, blocking it from reaching Jaal as they shot the ball, over and over, until it exploded. The Kett screamed as the field around it vanished and Scott and Marcus shot at its arms and legs.

It fell down beside the Moshae, screaming in pain. Jaal turned and advanced on it, dark as a thundercloud, intending to throttle it when Cora blocked his way and shouted at him to stop. Scott and Marcus shouted too as they ran down from the stairs and reached the Moshae in the dais.

"We need to talk to it, Jaal. We need answers!" Scott yelled as he and Marcus stood protectively before the Moshae, their guns on the Kett leader. Jaal looked at them, still angry beyond words, then at the Moshae behind them. Then his skin returned to its normal color and he did not try to fight them anymore.

He walked past the leader, past them and to the side of the Moshae. "Moshae Sjefa," he called as he raised her gently up from the floor to a half-sitting position. His arms supported her back as he called her name once more. "Moshae Sjefa!"

She coughed and opened her eyes, then looked up at him. "Jaal?"

He smiled down at her. "Yes, Moshae. It is me."

"What-" she looked around, at them, then at the Kett leader. "What's happening?" Her gaze fell on the humans. "And who are they? Another Kett?" she asked.

Jaal followed her gaze. "They are not Kett. They are…friends. We came to save you."

She stared longer at them. "I see." She freed herself from Jaal's grasp and tried to stand, but her limbs were wobbly so Jaal raised her up. The Moshae stood with an arm around Jaal, leaning heavily against him. Cora went forward and asked Jaal with a look if she can approach. Jaal nodded and she scanned the Moshae.

"Vitals are bad, her immune system's been compromised," she said, reading from her scanner.

"We'll make the Kett pay for what they did to you," Jaal vowed to the Moshae. He turned to look at the Kett leader behind Scott and scowled.

"Wait," the Moshae said quickly, placing her hand on his arm. "I want to know why the Archon-"

"Arrogant simpletons!" the Kett leader cried bitterly at them. "This is a gift we offer them. Who are you to deny it?" it demanded at Scott with a jerk of its white-capped head, glaring at him with the eyes of the Angara, but with the stars gone and the iris milky like a dead fish's. "These chosen join with us to become great, beyond your ability to understand. Like them, I was once wretched, unenlightened until the exalted DNA of our great Archon entwined with mine." It raised itself up from the floor despite its injuries to its limbs. Scott and Marcus backed away, their rifles still pointed at it, but despite the guns, it stood regal, its eyes burning with zeal despite the blood pouring from its wounds. "The Archon's vision was shared to me and I saw then how insignificant my life was compared to the glory that is yet to come. That is ours to have. I stand on the shoulders of greatness," it declared, looking coldly at the humans. "Which you never will," it added then its face twisted into hate as it cursed them. "For your sacrilege, you shall face the Archon's wrath. Our vengeance will be terrible to behold. You will be like grass withering before the fire! You shall not stop us from our destiny."

"Alright, that's enough crazy from you," Scott cut in, butting it into the stomach. He wasn't much a believer in destiny. As it doubled over, he opened the line to Commander Heckt. "Commander, I have the Moshae."

The line crackled and the commander answered. "Stars and Skies! We will send a shuttle to-" Someone started shouting in their language in panic, which transferred to the Commander's voice when she spoke again. "Alien! They say the armada is coming this way! We have to leave!"

"You saw the place!" Jaal cut in while Scott contacted the Tempest to get them now. "We can't just leave our people in here!"

"We're saving everyone as best as we can!" the commander said. "But the Archon is coming this way and it brings with it all of its forces! We're don't have the force to oppose it right now!"

"The Archon is coming," the Kett leader said in a flat tone as it stared into space, its arrogance gone and replaced with…fear? Then it jerked itself awake and cast its eyes on them with panic. "Leave this temple intact," it begged, "and I will open the pods of the Chosen. Take them-just, leave this holy place standing."

"No," the Moshae said firmly. "Even if I die here, this place must be destroyed."

"But what about our people here?" Jaal insisted. "Whatever was done to them, they are Angara. Our people. Our family. You cannot just let them die!"

"Jaal," the Moshae said, calling his name gently. "They are mindless. They are not our people. Their minds were never developed since their birth. They are a mockery of Angara. We need to destroy this place. They will only fill this place again with more of our brothers and sisters."

Jaal's skin grew turbulent as he struggled to control his feelings and he said, with effort, "With respect, our compatriots are also here. Our fighters, our scientists, our strength."

"And you know that they'd choose to die rather than lead more of their brethren in here."

Jaal looked hard at her, saw her resolution, and so turned to Scott. "Ryder, help me," he pleaded to him.

They heard the whoosh of a ship's exhaust and saw the Tempest descend and stop just above the ledge, the ship slightly tilted like a hummingbird on a flower. The doors to the cargo bay opened showing Vetra who was holding tightly to the ropes. "Get in! We don't have the time!" she yelled at them, the wind making her voice vibrate even more.

Scott whipped to the Kett leader. "Free them right now!"

"Only after you promise to leave the temple intact and go," it answered.

Marcus called his attention when he received additional information from Commander Heckt. "Scott. There's no time to save everyone," he advised. "The Archon may catch up with Commander Heckt and everyone else who's rescuing all the people in here. We can't be delayed; It'll be all for nothing if the armada arrives and shoot all the ships leaving this planet."

Scott nodded at the Kett leader. "We'll continue our interrogation with...that."

The Moshae coughed. "Don't bother. We have tried but their physiology allows them to adapt at will. Nothing you can do to them will have an effect."

Scott did not answer her but he turned around and shot the Kett leader dead. They then helped carry the Moshae inside the Tempest, Jaal jumping with her in her arms as Vetra pulled them in. As Jaal carried her to the medbay, she insisted on speaking to Commander Heckt. "Commander! Desist rescuing our people and start evacuating. This place must be destroyed! We shall not permit it standing for the Archon to create more of its forces from our own kind!"

The line was silent, then the commander answered, "Very well, Moshae. You asked for a very difficult thing, but I will obey." They heard her order her people to stop freeing captives and start evacuating then radioing in the ships above them to bomb it from orbit as soon as it was safe.

The Tempest arrived above the planet with all the other ships just as a spot of light bloomed from where the base once stood. Then a shrill, warning message passed through the fleet. "All ships retreat to Aya now!" Commander Do Xeel yelled. "The destroyer is here! Run as fast as you can!"

The fleet prepared to heed her, careless of their formation, when it happened.

At first, there was nothing. Then there was a flash; an explosion that ran through time and space and set a shrill ringing inside their ship.

"Hull integrity to 26%! Heat capacity 83%!" Suvi shouted above the din of the alarms going off.

"What?" Scott asked in shock and turned to look at his own console. It couldn't be. It couldn't be…that whatever that was, it took one hit to strip them of their protection and set all the alarms on the ship. He knew the Tempest was built with light armor and won't withstand either direct hit or sustained fire but it wouldn't go down easily like this. Not like this.

He looked up at the viewscreen. "What the fuck was that? An energy beam?"

"A gamma-ray burst," SAM answered, which made him gape even more. That kind of radiation with that level of power can only come from something as powerful as a star.

"Did a star explode nearby?" he asked, about to curse their luck in lying at the path of solar ejecta. Of all days to have a star exploding on them….

'No. It did not come from any star. The source was much closer, just outside the system."

He went still. There are no anomalies outside the system so it must mean-

"The destroyer," he said out loud.

The viewscreen flicked to the source of the burst. It was fading to a light tinged with violet, shifting to blue then down to red and disappearing, but still echoing as a microwave to radio wave. Then the ships between it and them lit up in a series of explosions, as their structures fell apart and their drives detonated.

"We need to get out of here, people. Now," Scott ordered. The shielding embedded in their armor had prevented them from being doused with radiation but they won't survive another hit.

Suvi shook her head. "We're flying blind. Our sensors shorted; we've got limited range. We can't make a safe FTL jump, especially since we're not out of the system yet."

"Our hull won't last much longer and heat is building up to dangerous levels," Kallo added. 'We can't jump in FTL, Scott. It's not safe."

Scott opened a line to engineering. "Gil, give me something that'll take us out of here, fast."

They heard yells interspersed with the shrill beeping of alarms. Then finally, they heard their engineer. "We've got a lot on our plate, Scott," he grunted. "Everything's fucked."

Commander Do Xeel's ship whizzed by and gave an insistent, blaring hail. "Why the skutting shit are you still here?" she yelled into the line. "Get the Moshae out of here, or we'll all die!"

"That burst shorted our sensors and warped our hull. We can't jump to FTL!" he yelled back.

"What?" the commander asked sharply. "You didn't get extra radiation shielding?"

"This is a survey ship, not a warship. And this wasn't mentioned in the briefings you gave us."

The commander uttered a long litany of curses then said something to her crew before returning to him. "Tell your pilots to keep in contact with the ship I will send. It'll guide you to the carrier that brought us here."

The fleet limped past Prachonyi, whose blue-green atmosphere was now aflame, auroras roiling on its edges, making the whole planet look like it was wreathed in hellfire. A cruiser broke away from the main fleet and flew alongside them. Then the fleet turned around and faced the planet, keeping it between them and the destroyer.

"What are you doing?" Scott asked.

"We'll buy you time to escape. The Moshae must reach Aya."

She sounded like she believed she wasn't going to survive. "What? Can't you fight it off?"

"This is not the time to argue! That destroyer's going to make a second attack and it'll be just as devastating as the first. None of us will be safe because it's using gravitational waves to kill us all!"

He paled. Those waves will travel through space like a tsunami on the coast. Objects caught by it have their molecular bonds ripped from each other, resulting in immediate disintegration depending on their distance. Not only is it that powerful, but it also travels by speed of light, as fast as their laser weapons but have a range wider than any weapon they have. No amount of armor or shields will protect them from its devastating effects.

Because that kind of wave can only be made by something as powerful as black holes.

He stood rooted to the spot, struck still with the immense power the Kett wield. What kind of monster was they up against?

Commander Do Xeel snapped him out of his panic. "Get the Moshae to Aya, Alien or it will be over for all of us."

Scott nodded. "Yes, Commander. Tempest, out," he replied and looked at Kallo to teeter them to the oncoming cruiser.

As the Tempest flew away, Scott looked back at the viewscreen, where the commander's ship and what's rest of the fleet grew farther and farther away, to lie in wait behind the planet at their unknown enemy and cover their escape. He felt helpless and it's making him feel sick to his stomach. This was supposed to be a job in exchange for some favor, yet he felt like a coward as they flew away and left those people to fight the monster coming for them.

He thought they had it; that they can win this war with the strength of their friends and sheer nerve. But now, seeing how their opponent can wipe their fleet in one shot, he knew they would need more than that.

* * *

AN: So that's it for 2019. We're busy this month due to the holidays so see you next year! Please review and let me know what you think of Part 1.

Edit: To the guest who left a review about this fic not considering the impacts of AI-human integration, I get your point. However for this fic there were two assumptions: 1) SAM was designed as a separate entity, not an augment like an extra neural network. It was made to understand organic thought, not uplift it, because (spoiler). If SAM was made to integrate with human minds to be one entity, then humans should have been trained on merging with an AI which the Ryder family did not do, even Alec. Second reason, as shown in Chapter 8, Scott has issues with SAM so he doesn't really use SAM's full capabilities (I hope I gave enough hints, like Scott consciously blocking SAM access to his memories). So for now, SAM is more like a highly capable personal assistant and the Pathfinder system is more like two minds in one body, not a cyber-augmented super human. I'll discuss the ramifications of this design in later chapters.


	23. Chapter 23

They met the carrier at one of its designated stops, who took them in and sped away to Aya without waiting for the others. It was clear that even if they survived, they would have to find their way to safety on their own.

Hours after his teammates were seen to, Scott went to the med-bay to for a check-up. He was also curious to meet the Moshae, the person they endured a lot of terrible things for, who was confined to the med bay for the duration of their travel. The doors of the med bay slid open and he saw Jaal already there beside the Moshae as she lay on one of the beds while Dr. Lexi tended to her.

"I'm sorry we fought," Jaal said tenderly, holding the Moshae's hand with both his hands as if it were a fragile bird. "What we saw will set our cause on fire."

"Yes, my broken heart can't even begin to process it," the Moshae answered him in a deep but pleasant voice. He bent down and hugged her.

Scott looked away, focusing on Dr. Lexi who was likewise intent on her scans. He waited after they separated and coughed. "Can you give us a minute, please?", he murmured to Dr. Lexi.

"Sure thing. But go gentle — she's in a fragile state," Lexi warned him. She tapped her omni-tool off and went out of the room. They watched her go out of the room, then when the doors closed behind her, the Moshae turned to Scott. "Did she just call me frail?" she huffed.

"I'm sure she meant no disrespect," Scott assured her. "I am impressed actually that you've managed to hold on for so long in that place."

Under their artificial lights, the color of the Moshae's skin was turning more vibrant unlike the dark and ashy shade she had back at the Kett base.

Moshae Sjefa chuckled, the lights from her opaque purple skin sputtering. "I see you're a flatterer." She laughed until her laughter died in gasps then she grew serious. "Jaal tells me you're a…"Pathfinder" from the Masaf Galaxy which in your tongue is called the Milky Way."

"Yes. Are you well enough to talk much?"

She sat up. "Did something pressing happen?"

He hesitated. Should he tell her about the fleet left behind so they could escape? "No. I just want to know how you're doing," he said eventually. Fortunately for them, her experiences at the Kett base did not break her spirit and allowed her to laugh still. That did not mean she was well enough to be told of something she could not control.

She sighed and relaxed against the bed. "Well enough. Your doctor did her best. I have no complaints about her care. There is nothing else I need than to be at home with my people. But if there are no pressing matters we should discuss, I ask for sleep."

"Of course."

She smiled at him. "Forgive me, even with my impressive endurance, I fear I must sleep," she said, then with a curious, pitying look at Jaal, she said to him, "Jaal, dear. Run along now. I shall talk with you again in the morning." She turned away from him and curled on her side to sleep, away from the two of them. Jaal murmured goodnight and stood up. He looked darkly at Scott and then passed him by without a word.

"Jaal," Scott called back softly, so as not to wake the Moshae. Jaal stopped and reluctantly turned to him.

"I'm sorry. I had to do it," he said softly, referring to his decision to abandon his people at the base.

Jaal just stared at him. "Forgive me. I feel too much anger in my heart right now to talk to you," he said stiffly, then, with a flutter of his rofjin, he was gone.

* * *

The carrier carried them past the Shroud and released them just above Aya.

The Tempest touched down on the landing pads outside the city surrounded by shuttles with their doors open, showing people inside cheering at the return of the Moshae. On the landing pad, he could see the governor and her retinue, with Evfra de Tarshaav beside her squinting at them.

They disembarked, the Moshae the first one off. Scott was about to assist her but she drew his hand away. She walked forward, her posture straight with dignity, to meet her people. Scott and Jaal followed closely behind her just in case the effects of her capture made themselves felt again. As she walked between her cheering people, she smiled. She saw the Governor and Evfra waiting for her at the end. She raised her arm above her head and waved it. "Stars and skies light our way!" she said.

Paaran Shie walked towards her and waved her arm to return the greeting. "Stars and skies light our way!"

"She knows how to play a crowd," Scott remarked lightly to his companion. He glanced at him to see whether he was still mad at him.

Jaal snorted. "She's the Moshae," he said with pride in his voice. Scott smiled and let himself bask in the crowd's cheer. Things were cold between them and he was relieved that at least Jaal had not cut himself off from talking with him completely. It would not be smart to lose an informant so early, particularly when Jaal was the only one willing to associate with them.

The two female Angara reached each other then, stopping to press their forearms together, clenched fists touching the other's shoulder.

"Welcome home," Paaran Shie said, the light in her skin humming softly.

"I never thought I'd see it again," Moshae Sjefa replied and lowered her arm. She stepped back to show Scott and Jaal behind her. "Without the Resistance — and the aliens — I wouldn't be here."

"We made a good team," Scott said, with a tight smile at Jaal. Jaal did not look his way and stepped forward. "We freed more than just the Moshae," he said. "We have destroyed the facility where they do their foul deeds. Our brothers and sisters will never be tormented ever again." He paused, then added, "And the Pathfinder killed the Kett leader."

Scott's brow shot up in surprise when he saw the crowd turn to him. "Yep, I killed it," he piped. The execution was hardly noteworthy. Jaal made it sound as if he had engaged the Kett leader in a duel, instead of just shooting it like an afterthought. But whatever. He rather liked basking on their goodwill if that was what the glowing of the crowd around them meant.

Paaran Shie turned to Scott with the same look she gave to the Moshae. As she did, the crowd fell silent.

He realized it was a silence of deference. At that moment, elation welled up in him redering him speechless also.

"We have a lot to celebrate," Evfra said sourly, breaking the trance-like scene.

Paaran Shie said to Scott and said, "You have fulfilled your bargain, human. We have much to talk about."

"Take your time," Scott answered cheerfully, still giddy from the veneration earlier. "I'm sure you want to celebrate the return of the Moshae. I'm not going anywhere."

"Not without the help of our fleet," Evfra growled but a look from the governor cut it short.

"Enough Evfra," Paaran Shie scolded. "The important thing is the Moshae is restored to us. We will not let anything ruin this day." To Scott, she said, "Follow us to the headquarters and we'll talk about the alliance while your ship is being repaired."

"Uh, arranging the alliance is not really my job as a Pathfinder. Can I call our ambassadors to go over the alliance with you?" he asked. The Nexus would be ecstatic to know their success directly from Angara.

"Of course. I give permission for them to come here," she said with a look at Evfra. Evfra muttered darkly but he nodded. She flickered at the crowd and led the Moshae away inside the building. The crowd turned to them with lingering curiosity but they scattered when Efvra began barking instructions to set up a banquet.

Evfra turned away from the crowd and stepped in front of Scott, taking the place the governor had previously been standing on. "You're invited to the celebration. It'd start after dusk, but as for now, you are allowed to go over the common grounds," he said through gritted teeth. He turned to his companion and his tone was more pleasant. "Well done, Jaal. You're restored to us. Report for reassignment."

Scott kept still and watched Jaal's reaction at the corner of his eyes. He knew Jaal still harbored ill-feelings towards him so he would not be surprised if he left.

"I wish to stay with the Pathfinder," he heard him say. Scott looked at him, eyes wide. So did Evfra.

"What for?" he barked.

Jaal was silent, so Scott answered. "There are still some things I don't understand about your people. Jaal was very helpful to us on learning your customs and I wish to learn more," he said. Uncontrollable as Jaal may have been, they have no other Angara to keep them from blundering their way here or give an excuse for Evfra to sabotage their burgeoning alliance. Also, there was a pressing reason to have the Angara on their side now that they knew the Kett cannot travel through the Shroud which the Nexus needed to be immediately informed.

Evfra looked from one to the other, his pupils turning to slits. "I see the benefit," he said finally. "Request granted." He then walked away.

There was a heavy silence after Evfra's absence that neither was willing to banish quickly.

"I…owe you a debt," Jaal said quietly to him, turning to him with his speckles flaring against a murky backdrop. "I forgot you have made it possible for me to regain my honor."

He nodded. "Just..when you're in my team, I expect you to trust me and follow what I say. Try not to run off ahead," he said drily.

Jaal looked thoughtfully at him. After a while, he nodded and silently, they returned to the Tempest to tell the crew the good news.

* * *

Later that evening, the Moshae pressed Scott and his crew to attend the celebration, saying that it was propitious for their formal introduction to the Angara. She advised them that if they desired to pursue good relations with the Families, then the event would greatly facilitate that by cementing the association between her rescue to them in the minds of the honor-focused Angara. She knew better than they on how her own people worked, so they did as she suggested.

The celebration was held in one of their competition halls in one of their towers, which was built similar to their own amphitheaters. On the sides were tables and tables of food and drink laid out. Banners made of cloth, paper or projections were paraded by the people milling in the stands, written with messages welcoming home the Moshae and a blurb on the bottom on which Family had commissioned it. Each banner was designed with increasing extravagance, as if asking to get the attention. While the Moshae had the lion's share of the greetings, some welcomed the "aliens". It was simpler in design than the Moshae's but at least they had some.

The Tempest crew joined the Moshae on the stage together with all the important people in Aya, safe from the crowd packed tightly on the stands. Scott was worried the tower might collapse due to the sheer volume of people who came to see the Moshae, jostling and snarling at each other to get a better view of her even with the extremely wide projections all around them. Or by the sheer volume of the noise they made, with the buzzing of drones above them recording everything for broadcast to the homeworlds. Even beyond the windows, he could see a lot of shuttles staying aloft around the tower and blocking the view of the horizon. Their doors were open, showing Angara who was watching them through binoculars.

Scott looked down at the Initiative's formal wear, a white suit with light blue accents and thought they were extremely underdressed compared to the Angara around them. Their clothes changed color and pattern at whim, like their wearers. Some were subtle or gradual when the colors transitioned but a few changed like flickering lights. Individually, they were impressive but collectively, they were a mind-screw. His brain hurt taking in all the riot of color around him. It was like being inside a kaleidoscope.

As the leader of the Tempest, he had to stand on the stage and endure lights flashing in his face, a smile pasted on his face as the Moshae delivered a long speech rallying the Angara against the war. Then another segment with the Moashae answering questions from the crowd. Sometimes, someone would ask him, tentatively of course, to recount their story on what happened at the Kett base and how they had rescued the Moshae. It was a reprieve. His clothes were sticking and he seemed to have lost feeling in his legs by the long hours standing up.

Then the governor came by to introduce him to the First Daughters of the Families, who looked as old as the Moshae. Fortunately for him, they were clothed in their ceremonial garbs, which had subdued colors and none of the epileptic-inducing effects. They were wearing headgear with something protruding from the top of the head, which was usually sharp. Then either a plume or a tail extends from the top of their head to their back. There were some with capes to match and some with hoods, but their body clothes were the same in its tight fit, even those made of leather-like material. When they held out their arms across their chest to exchange the Angaran version of a handshake, they were wearing arm braces with little blades slipped in the slits running from elbow to wrist. He heard clacking as they came forward to meet him and when they turned around, he saw it was made by the spurs in the back of the heel of their boots. They were rather aloof and haughty as they thanked him for returning their 'servant' to them. Scott did not know what to make of that and only thanked them politely when they offered to pay back favor of equal value if he asks.

While Scott was busy on the formal side of the celebration receiving the representatives of the Angaran homeworlds, his team was enjoying themselves immensely. The less important people were more exciting and they surrounded his team, plying them with food and drink and curious questions about themselves. Scott shot a look at his crew who, upon catching the look, grinned and raised their glasses to him. He thought irritably that he should ask them later if they had gathered useful intel from their comfortable socializing.

Finally, the ceremony ended and he was free to mingle with the crowd. He stepped off the stage and immediately, Arbiter Renav, a young Angara from the judicial branch of Aya came forward and spoke urgently about legal matters between the Angara and the Initiative. She gave him a datapad with about a thousand pages regarding Angaran law. He looked at the datapad with a frown and told her that, in the absence of the designated ambassador by the Nexus, he was the interim representative of the Milky Way races.

"A male?" she exclaimed in surprise. "I see. So that explains why you aliens are so….disordered", she remarked, her lights flashing merrily. Before he could ask her impolitely about her comment, the Moshae crashed way to them with a drink in hand as Paaran Shie sighing loudly behind her.

"Moshae, stop. You're not young anymore for this sort of revelry," Paaran said and tried to snatch the drink from the Moshae's hand. The Moshae drew it out of her reach and hissed at her. "Be quiet, Paaran. If you were also trapped in that dreadful Kett base, you'd also wish to drink like a fish." They stopped when they saw Scott and Arbiter Renav staring at them. "Ah, Pathfinder. It's lovely to see you again," the Moshae greeted Scott with a sweep of her arms that made her drink slosh against its glass.

"Nice to see you too," Scott said. Arbiter Renav gave a look of acknowledgment to the governor and quietly slipped away.

"You're also at the kett base," the scholar asked, wearing a modest and clean suit of violet with only a gold circlet on her brow as her accessory in contrast to the governor who was wearing her full regalia like a First Daughter. She wore a plumed headgear without the sharp spike and a bodysuit with jewels strung on it like dew drops, refracting color with every change of the cloth underneath it. "You do agree with me and not the governor, right?"

Scott looked from one to the other, the Moshae's lights sputtering uncontrollably while the governor looked on, stony faced. He couldn't tell their feelings or moods because unlike Jaal's luminous and very lively skin, the skin of the two women were dull with freckles that did not twinkle very much. Without any cues, he thought it wise not to get between these women. "Er, I don't think it's right for me to tell someone far older what she does with her life."

The Moshae beamed then turned to the governor. "See, Paaran? He gets it."

"Yes, he does," the governor said with a sigh. The Moshe turned to him, still smiling then suddenly hugged him.

The Angara were rather bony in the chest and he felt her collar digging on his sternum. He wasn't one for hugs but he didn't mind it. He rather expected this sort of display based on his visit to the med bay when the Moshae was then coalescing and Jaal being very attentive to her. It was nice actually, when he allowed himself to feel it. He was about to return it until he suddenly found himself seizing. Apparently, the Moshae wanted to electrocute him too.

" .Fuck," he yelled between gasps after the Moshae released him immediately, finding that he didn't take it well. She stood there wringing her hands and looking at him with a stricken expression as the crowd gathered around them, drawn with his outburst. The governor snapped at them and they reluctantly dispersed. One of those was a big Angara, who snickered as he turned away.

"I…I wanted to give you a warm hug," the Moshae said.

"Clearly, it does not agree with his physiology," Paaran said, with a detachment of a scientist on an experiment. "I think I should issue a directive on social interactions with the aliens."

"That would be best," the Moshae agreed. "I am sorry, Pathfinder. I did not know that would happen. Here," she said, taking a gun from her waistband, which expanded into a sniper rifle, a pale beauty of pure death and offered it to him. "I'm old and I can't use it any longer. We call it Isharay. It's our word for "goodbye". With this, one shot is all it takes to say goodbye to your enemy. Provided that you know how to aim of course," she said and cackled.

Scott held it up to examine it. It was very light and more elegant than the geth-created Widow, which with its weight and hard recoil, strained the shoulder even if it was downgraded from the original. He saw how the Isharay worked in the field and he was impressed. Looking down at it lying serenely on his hands, he felt a pang of regret. It was too beautiful to be disassembled just so its mechanism can be studied, which surely the Nexus would insist on as to have an advantage against their enemies. "This is beautiful. Thank you, Moshae."

"Can you forgive me?"

This looked pretty much like being bribed with a toy after being wronged by an elder. But, it's a very good toy. "Of course."

She beamed and hiccuped. "Use it well. Kill a lot of Kett for me."

Paaran Shie frowned. "You give such a fine weapon to him?" she mocked the elder scholar. "You might as well give him a club for surely, he will use it like one."

"He is not like our males, Paaran," the Moshae scolded her. "I've seen him fight and I have no doubt he will use it well."

Paaran's speckles flickered. "If you say so, Moshae," she conceded. The Moshae started swaying so she caught her elbow. "Excuse me, Pathfinder. The Moshae is in danger of collapsing," she said and with a nod at Scott, she led the Moshae away.

Scott moved through the crowd, searching for his team who he suspected were drawn away for more exciting activities. He was going to the balconies, away from the stifling heat inside the theater, when he saw Evfra and Jaal talking together. He ducked his head and about to turn out of sight, but Efvra saw the movement, saw him and gestured for him to come over. He stopped, hesitated, wondering if he can afford to snub him yet. Then he realized he was being ridiculous. He's a soldier, not a child. He hadn't done anything wrong. So he obeyed, marching over with steel in his spine and force in his boots.

Maybe a little bit much. He can't help it; there's something about the big Angara that makes him stiff and wary. Evfra had not been kind to them even after they rescued the Moshae. Why, he looked even more …disapproving.

The look on the Angara him happy immediately as it made him feel a small sense of petty satisfaction at showing him up. But still, he needed to be polite with Evfra despite his behavior. He did not understand yet how the politics of Aya worked, and it wouldn't be prudent to tread on the wrong foot due to ignorance.

"I suppose, with our people growing closer, we shall not be calling you alien now," Evfra said sourly when he came near.

Scott tried not to make his smile too wide. "Yes. My name's Scott. Scott Ryder."

Evfra stared at him. He kept staring at him, which made him feel self-conscious as if he had done something wrong and he didn't know what it was. Then he became angry; he hadn't done anything wrong. Maybe this was one of Evfra's games and he was trying to wrong-foot him to force him to commit an offense and end the alliance. He was about to express his anger when Evfra spoke again. "Your name is Skut?" he asked.

"It's Scott," he corrected, pronouncing it as skaht.

"Ah. Scoot," Evfra repeated, smiling. Scott thought Evfra got over his disapproval but the smile was just too…toothy. His lips were parted so wide, he could see all his little, sharp teeth like those of a shark.

Something about it seemed suspicious, especially with Jaal standing too still beside him, watching Efvra like a mongoose on a cobra, so he said, "But I'm known more as Ryder."

"Ah," Evfra leaned back and crossed his arms. "But I prefer to call you Skoot."

Scott gave up trying to correct his pronunciation. He was here to forge goodwill between their people not starting a fight over something so small as this. But he couldn't help but feel a lingering bit of uneasiness at the expression on Angara's face. "Jaal says you have some of our people in your custody," he said, changing the subject to his most urgent concern.

Evfra stared at him again with a look he couldn't identify. "Yes," he said carefully.

"I'd like to take them back. It'd be wonderful if they're off your hands, right?"

Evfra smiled slowly. "Of course! But they're gone."

Scott stared at him. "What do you mean gone? Gone where?"

"To our stomachs of course. They taste best roasted and dipped in sauce while you share paariko with your family. I have a recipe if you're interested."

He looked one second onto Scott's expression of shock mixed with dismay then he cracked. "I'm joking. They're in jail until we decide what to do with them," he said. He howled in laughter as Scott's expression turned furious while Jaal murmured in dismay beside him. "Do you really think we're stupid enough to eat something we don't know?" he asked, when his laughter trickled into chuckles.

"Excuse me then. I'm going ahead to fetch them," Scott said, walking quickly and resolutely away from the Resistance leader as Evfra started laughing again.

"Ryder…Ryder," Jaal called as he tripped behind him. "On behalf of all Angara, please accept our deepest apologies for the existence of Evfra," he said. "He was always a veshaanan."

Scott stopped mid-stride and turned to him. "A vesha-what?"

"A veshaanan. It means 'someone pleased with his own shit'."

He did not answer right away. The furrow stayed between his brows and so his eyes remained in shadow. But when he did answer, it was with a smile, small, but bright enough to part those heavy clouds. "In our language, we call that an asshole."

Jaal smiled also. "Asshole. That is an apt description." He added wryly, "It's interesting how there is a similar term for a type of person in both our galaxies."

* * *

AN: I'm back as promised. As always, reviews and comments are welcome.


	24. Chapter 24

After the celebration, the Tempest was fully repaired and the team left Aya to report at the Nexus. As Kallo and Suvi ran checks for lift-off, Scott stopped by Jaal in the right cargo room to ask him if the Kett had brought in reinforcements outside the Shroud.

"Not that we know of," the Angara replied, cloth in hand as he cleaned the parts of his rifle on his desk. "Their ships, powerful as they are, had not been able to pass through it and no new Kett fleet has joined the war." He stopped wiping and looked curiously at him. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing," Scott answered as nonchalantly as he could. "Just worried that there were more destroyers out there."

"As far as we have found, they only have that one at Prachonyi and the Archon's flagship," Jaal assured him. Scott nodded and thanked him though he didn't think two destroyers with those powers were reassuring.

At last, all checks were completed and the Tempest flew away from Aya with the Angara waving their arms after them.

They were escorted through the Shroud and released. The Tempest immediately flew straight to the Nexus. Once they docked, Captain Dunn immediately told them to report in the conference room. Scott, Cora, and Marcus disembarked and passed swiftly through the lobby on the way to the tram station. They arrived at the conference room with the Nexus Management and the science team already seated there The Podromos administration was also present through the holographic projections of Bradley and Abrams. Seated beside them was a grey-skinned Salarian with pink-colored skin around his eyes. They later learned it was Jarun Tann, the one who was supposed to be the director of the Initiative until Sloan fridged him and thus his career. Scott wasn't surprised Tann was seated as far away from Sloane as possible.

"So, what happened?" Captain Dunn asked them immediately, almost demanding, after calling the meeting to order.

Scott told them about the bet in Aya, going to Voeld and assaulting the Kett base. He then finished it by informing them that by winning the bet, they were now allowed to establish negotiations with them.

"That was an extremely reckless idea but I'm glad you've managed to do it. Now, let's go over the results of your mission," Captain Dunn instructed with a wave of her hand. "By saving the Moshae Sjefa, you are now sure that they will not be hostile against us?"

"Yes. Apparently, the vaults were built for them. By saving the Moshae, they agreed to let us activate the vaults and change the worlds for our own needs. In return, they asked that the vault are theirs to study and we are only allowed to activate it. That was their offer," Scott explained.

She turned to Addison. "Do we have a diplomat ready?"

Addison shook her head. "Our primary ambassador died during the riots. There is his assistant, Ambassador Rialla, but she is still in cryo."

"Have her awakened then. We'll need her to negotiate with them." Addison nodded so the captain turned back to Scott. "But are you sure we can trust them?"

"I think so. They're mostly…transparent." Literally and figuratively. He and SAM had collected enough observations regarding the changing of the Angara's skin to be able to tell their emotional state about 90% of the time. The Angara show their thoughts much more clearly than they do and he idly wondered what benefit could there be for a race that physically cannot lie?

"What else?"

Scott tapped at his omnitool and showed them images from the Kett base. He also forwarded Dr. Lexi's preliminary analysis of a Kett corpse. The captain told him to share the study with the science team and instructed Addison to bring in a xenosociologist, who later entered the room. She was an Asari with dark blue skin and freckles like frost on the base of her crest. She was plain with a thin face, which was unusual with her race, except for dark eyes ringed with thick lashes. She took her seat and the Nexus science team poured over the data along with her.

"By assimilating DNA of organic species they encounter, they ensure adaptation to any environment they happen to be in," Professor Henrik remarked, with a hint of awe as he read the report. "However, the state of their genes also makes traditional reproduction impossible." He paused as he came to the end of the report then frowned. "Yet, it is possible, that by their very nature, they have no other means of reproduction except assimilation."

"Don't try to pity them now, Professor," Sloane drawled as she leaned back into her seat. "You have just as good as said they were parasites. All the more reason we should eliminate them."

Professor Radijn eyes narrowed at her. "Just because they act differently from us does not warrant their slaughter."

"Act differently?" Sloane asked, indignant. She now sat straight in her chair as she spoke to the professor. "Have you seen what they do? They capture people and they transform them against their will. It's evil, plain as day. And now you want us to try to reason with them?"

"They may not have the same understanding of evil as us. To them, this may be natural."

Sloane stared at her, unable to speak from extreme anger and bafflement, but before her anger won out, Captain Dunn cut in. "Whether what they're doing is evil or not, it is still a fact that they are dangerous to all sentient beings in this cluster," she decided, stopping the debate firmly. She turned to Professor Radijn. "Do you think there is a chance of peaceful coexistence with them?"

The professor leaned back and crossed her arms. "It's hard to say. There's a lot we don't know about the Kett. Without contact with their leader, we can't establish dialogue where we can convince them of other ways to coexist."

"Convince them of other ways?" Sloane sputtered. "Are you suggesting we should go talk to them?"

"I'm only suggesting we should not act rashly, with incomplete information," the professor replied evenly, struggling to remain calm. "And stop advocating genocide as if it's the only course of action left."

"Yes. Let's not go kill them for trying to kill us and go talk to them. Nevermind that they're trying to KILL US ALL," Sloane jeered. "Your idealism is going to kill us all, Professor."

"Enough!" Captain Dunn thundered. "It is dangerous for now to try talking with them." Sloane started to smirk so she spoke again to cut it short. "It is also not feasible for us to fight them directly. Podromos is barely running. So for now, we'll collect information from them discreetly while we pursue an alliance with the Angara. About them, we need your expertise, Professor," she said, directing it to the Asari.

She nodded. "Of course, Captain."

"You can request to have a team with you. Also, you'll be joined by an ambassador. She'd need to be briefed, so be ready in a week." To Sloane, she said, "In light with the revelations from the Kett, we'll need to upgrade our defenses in case they will retaliate. If they can adapt to any environment, then I want to know how we can counter that. Go over and see what you can find. I expect a report soon." Captain Dunn then turned to Scott. "Then, Pathfinder, inform the Angara that we're honored for their offer and we'd be sending our representatives to Aya soon."

Scott nodded. "There's also something you have to know about the Kett." He tapped at him omnitool and the image of a Kett appeared again but now with an Angara beside it. "The Kett was made from the Angara."

Captain Dunn's brow rose as they looked at the comparison between the two. "I thought the Angara said the Kett were another race from outside the cluster? Were they lying? Or is this just to save face?"

He thought of Jaal and his uncontrollable outbursts when he learned where the Kett came from and slowly shook his head. "I don't think so. They're likely telling the truth."

"I agree with the pathfinder," Professor Henrik said and brought up the Kett reports. "DNA analysis of the Kett shows splicing from many genetic sources. It is possible that the Kett truly is foreign from the Angara and only use them as a host."

"Like a virus mutating," Sloane muttered. "They're ugly enough for it."

Scott continued his report. "Which leads me to my second discovery. I have good news and bad news."

Sloane narrowed her eyes. "What kind of good news is there with that around?" she asked, pointing at the image of the malformed Kett.

"They can't pass through the Shroud, unlike the Angara. This means they can't get reinforcements from wherever they come from. And if you know their level of technology, you wouldn't wish to."

"And the bad news?" Captain Dunn asked, her expression apprehensive.

"The same thing. They can't pass through the Shroud. Which means they're stuck here, same as us. But," he tapped at his omnitool and a video of the Angaran fleet escorting them into and out the Shroud around Aya played, "the Angara can leave if they like which leave us-"

"-to battle it out with the Kett or turn into them," Captain Dunn finished. She closed her eyes, then leaned on the table with her arms, as if trying to push away the bad news with her hands. Her head bowed and sighed deeply. Then she raised her head. "This keeps getting worse. As soon as we solve one problem, another one pops out," she said irritably. "We have allies we can't trust but can't afford not to have." She turned to Professor Radijin. "Professor, it is imperative that you and Ambassador Rialla secure the Angara's cooperation. You must encourage them to stay and fight. This is a life and death situation and any issues about this will have to wait."

Professor Radijin looked hesitant but after a while, she nodded.

"Anything else?" she asked Scott.

"You need to see the battle at the Kett base. It's about the Kett capabilities," he answered, putting up a recording of the battle over Prachonyi. When the destroyer appeared, the Nexus science team leaned forward.

"So that was the source of the gamma-ray explosion we detected," Dr. Aridana said over the sounds of the Tempest crew yelling in panic.

"I was hoping you could explain to us what it was. We didn't have the time to find out back then," Scott answered, as the recording showed him asking desperately from his crew for a miracle. He tapped at the console and the recording paused.

Dr. Aridana clasped her hands and set it on the table."A few days ago, we detected that explosion on the same system you were fighting in. But that wasn't the strangest thing that happened that day. If you were right and it was caused by the arrival of a Kett destroyer, then what we suspected regarding its origin was right." Dr. Aridana looked sorry at Scott. "That wasn't an attack; that was a side-effect."

Scott gaped at her. He looked at the screen, which showed flashes of lights that meant ships exploding then back to her. "What?"

"We detected gravitational warping coming from the Remav system going to Vaotessa, which is the system where you were. Now that you've confirmed that it was a traveling ship that made it, our suspicion of its cause is more definite." She paused and her voice became less confident. "There is a theoretical mode of travel that compresses space in front of a ship and then expands behind to propel it. The ship travels by riding the wave produced. However, it was extremely inefficient and required so much power compared to our FTL technology, that it wasn't pursued. Also, it was inherently destructive to the surrounding space as you will see later. But that does not mean other races won't develop it." Dr. Aridana tapped on her console and replayed the scene where they were hit with the burst then paused the vid to explain."As the ship travels, it collects particulate matter, which is then turned into a hyper-energetic radiation slurry that is released upon the arrival of the ship. In essence, a gamma-ray explosion that atomizes most things, depending on field intensity and travel time. That was what hit you."

"So it wasn't even a weapon," Scott said softly. To be destroyed so easily without the use of a gun. "The Angaran fleet also said they can use gravitational waves to attack."

Everyone jerked up in their seats. "That's impossible," Captain Dunn breathed.

"It isn't impossible. If we are right in guessing the type of technology they were using, then they can do it by using the same principles." Dr. Aridana said and went still when she caught the hopeless expressions around the room.

"We appreciate all the reports you can give us," the captain said without much joy. She put her hand over her temple and rubbed it, then glanced at Prof Radijn. "It is extremely critical that you and the ambassador get the support of the Angara or their secret of passing through the Shroud. Prof Radijn appeared to hesitate, but she glanced at the vid then nodded.

Captai Dunn turned to the Podromos team. "I hope there's some good news from your end."

"Good for the most part," Bradley answered in his warm dulcet tones. His smile was warm despite the flickering light. "No major incidents. The Kett colony has been a silent neighbor so far. As long as we keep out of each other's way, we're good. Though I don't know how long we can keep that up. This is one thing I want to talk about with all of you."

Captain Dunn nodded grimly and turned to Sloane.

"We can't get rid of them with shuttles alone," Sloane answered Bradley. "And we don't have enough force if they retaliate. I can only assure you I have a team with an asteroid nearby to nuke the bastards if they try to bite you."

"That's a serious criminal offense," Bradley gravely replied, referring to asteroid dropping on garden worlds.

"Yes, well, we aren't in Council space anymore," Sloane said. "And we're all alone out here. Once we're gone, that's it."

"Couldn't we ask the Angara for help?" Scott suggested. "We do have a mutual enemy."

Captain Dunn cocked her head at him. "Could you? How much credit did we earn saving this Moshae?"

"Well, the Moshae cost two fleet so a lot, I guess?"

Captain Dunn thought this through and turned to Addison. "Tell Ambassador Rialla when she wakes up if she can manage to include the liberation of Eos on the accords." Addison nodded so she turned to Bradley. "Anything else to report?"

Bradley leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin which was rough with stubble and white hair growing among the black. "Our silent neighbors isn't just our only concern. I'd rather have Hainly to explain," he said, nodding at the Podromos' administrator beside him.

Hainly cleared her throat and laid her forearms enthusiastically at the table. "We haven't been on schedule because the planet had finally rained. Unfortunately, it's been raining for months now. We had to move to higher ground as the canyon got flooded. But before we relocated, let me show you something."

She tapped at her omnitool and the projection changed into some kind of plant. "A lot has happened. We had our first rain a week after the Pathfinder left. Then another, but filled with minerals so we had to scramble to protect the camp or the acid will eat it. Then another one a week later but this time with additional things. The storm did not just bring water, it also brought out bacteria with the water," she finished, looking at them expectantly.

The scientists leaned forward and the non-scientists looked at each other. "Should we be worried about that?" Captain Dunn asked.

Hainly stared at them. "Sorry. I forgot I wasn't talking to a scientist," she murmured. "Do you know when life first started on Earth?"

"For the sake of the non-scientists, do tell," Captain Dunn said, catching Dr. Henrik's mouth moving.

"Life started about 3.5 billion years ago. It's just simple bacteria then, but it was the precursor for complex life which arose after billions of years of evolution."

"It's much earlier on Thessia and Sur'Kesh," Prof. Henrik remarked.

Hainly nodded at him. "Yes. Regardless, life appeared unexpectedly. And now we're seeing the same thing here. The vault was pumping out bacteria that can live on Eos. It's different from bacteria from Earth and most of it died after a while. But the ones that survived…they may become the precursors of life here in Eos."

"And this is important because…?" Captain Dunn asked. She was of a practical turn of mind and this talk about bacteria didn't interest her very much.

"Think about it. A vault, making bacteria that takes billions of years to make naturally. It makes you think what exactly is the nature of that vault."

"The Angara said they came from the vault so bacteria wouldn't be hard for the vaults to make," Scott said.

Everyone turned around at him. "What?" Captain Dunn asked him while Professor Radijin sat straighter and leaned towards him.

"They said they were made by the vaults and that they seem to have a religion based on the belief that the vaults have a Maker," Scott explained. "They explained that was how the Kett tricked them at first by showing off their superior technology and pretending to be their Maker. My contact says they have a copy of the vault they came from at Aya."

Professor Radijin sank gratefully back to her chair. "An intelligent species made by another one? This is interesting. Very interesting," she mused. "I shall be looking forward to our mission in Aya."

"The Nexus administration is happy to oblige," Captain Dunn said drily, with an amused glance at the Nexus team who were buzzing excitedly in their seats. "Abrams, please continue."

"I am now sure that bacteria are not the only thing the vault is capable of making," Hainly remarked. "As weeks passed, it became apparent to us that it's making organisms that are getting complex at every output. Here, let me show you."

She tapped at her omnitool and a leaf turned. On the underside, they saw a shiny, silvery-blue patch on it. They stared at it and Captain Dunn shook her head. "I'm sorry, Hainly, but I just don't understand what it is we're supposed to be looking at."

"This is a lichen. It's a step up from bacteria. It's not all from the Milky Way either but one of the things the vault produced. Pretty soon, we predict that more complex life forms will appear. The reason I'm showing it now is to point out the fact that the vault produced a fungus that has a symbiotic relationship with bacteria from our galaxy. This isn't the only example. We've also conducted tests on the soil from this plant and for those who are still thriving and compare it to those who don't. We've found Eos bacteria living in their roots. We've taken samples and inoculated them to others. Our test farms thrived."

"Thus, establishing an ecosystem for more complex species to thrive on," Professor Henrik finished, the projection reflecting off his wide eyes.

Hainly nodded. "The batches of bacteria had inoculated the soil for our plants to thrive. It would make establishing settlements easier as food production wouldn't be energy-intensive like how we do it currently. It'd be just as easy as farming in Earth without advanced technology. Of course, it's not all good news. If we follow our predictions, we may be going to encounter pathogens. We have to accept the possibility of disease and prepare accordingly."

"So basically, we show these creatures who's the boss," Sloane replied, her arms crossed and seated deep in her seat.

"Something like that. The vault is integrating us into the planet as if we've always been here. As if we're finally home."

Everyone stared at the projection, which seemed to be the light out of the very dark tunnel they've been trying to escape from. The fact that finally, something was welcoming them was so gratifying, it made their heart swell and their throat catch so that they could not speak. Then Captain Dunn cleared her throat. "I hate to break this magical moment, but we've still got things to talk about," she said, still the voice of prudence.

Hainly blinked a few times. "Yes. As I said, it's been raining for a while but we can endure being wet if this is what we're getting in return. We're hitting our mining quota but not food production, unfortunately. You'll have to bear with us a little longer."

"So we're back to nutri-paste," Sloane remarked. "People's gonna riot over the blandness of the food."

"Then I trust you'll reassure them that this is temporary," Captain Dunn said to her mildly. She looked around the table. "Anyone else has something to report?"

Dr. Aridana raised a hand. "We have some findings of the vault and an anomaly at Remav. To start, something big has happened at Remav."

"How so?"

showed the map of the cluster. "We detected shifts in the gravitational field in the cluster and small but significant shifts in the position of the stars. Upon investigation, we discovered it was due to a great loss of mass in the Remav system. A planet to be exact." The projection displayed a system with a planet missing between the second planet and fourth.

"The Angara said they were conducting an operation there to lure the destroyer away from Prachonyi," Scott said. "Maybe the Kett were the ones who destroyed the planet?"

Dr. Aridana pursed her lips. "Probably. But the gravitational distortion was more intense than the warping we detected. The Kett destroyer's technology may be powerful, but not powerful enough to destroy a planet."

The room fell silent as they puzzled over this. "Everything's going worse and weirder," Sloane muttered.

"Thank you Doctor, for that interesting report," Captain Dunn said to the astrophysicist, "but I don't think it's relevant to our issues at the moment. Is there anything else we need to know?"

"yes. We have conducted studies regarding the vault at Eos," Dr. Aridana said, nodding at her colleague.

Chief Lucan tapped a claw at his omni-tool and the projection changed to show something that looked like a stout turnip with the stems folded at the top. On closer inspection, Scott recognized the stems as the monoliths, which poked above ground while the rest of the arms were buried deep underground. "We have reason to believe that the vault is not formed on the planet by its unusual and compact shape but it must have been placed there millions of years ago. If the Pathfinder's contact is correct, then we hit on the correct conclusion. " He zoomed the projection and pointed at the lower bottom of the picture, where the vault was embedded at the bedrock. "We've conducted some seismic readings at its base and mapped them to show you these results. Look there; there's no trauma here; the bedrock looked carved. Also, judging from the structure of the arms and its bottom which looks like it has an exhaust, we think it may be able to extricate itself. Even capable of space flight."

They all stared at it.

"You mean that thing can move?" Scott asked him incredulously.

Chief Lucan nodded. "We have evidence to believe that it can. There were traces of extraterrestrial material stuck in the grooves of its walls. Perhaps this is the reason why this cluster has plenty of habitable worlds beyond normal expectations."

Scott was about to say aloud the next logical thing but stopped when he remembered a sobering thought. He looked around the table and saw, from the captain and the others, that they have arrived at the same conclusion too. Imagine, a terra-forming vault, under their control, able to transfer to other planets! But-

"Too bad our allies made it their condition for helping us," Sloane said, speaking for them all. "I was wondering why they'd give up a planet so easily. Now we know it's because they got the better part of the bargain."

"But we have a planet of our own," Scott pointed out. "That should be enough, right?" he asked, looking around the table.

No one rushed to answer him, looking at the projection of the vault, the virtual image of a cornucopia, with hungry eyes. It reminded them too much of the Prothean artifacts left by a long-dead civilization and seemed to exist only to benefit them. Just like the Angara, the Hanar laid claim to the artifacts by stating that the Protheans uplifted them so it was theirs by right of inheritance, but their government's enforcement of this claim was as weak as the slap of their tentacles. Everyone ignored it and the whole galaxy had benefited greatly from its free use.

However, unlike the Hanar, the Angara are very capable of inflicting damage they cannot afford to have. They are also few and alone, a tiny minority in this galaxy.

"The Pathfinder is right," Captain Dunn said reluctantly as if refusing food during a famine. "We have planets for our homes and allies for protection. It should be enough."

Even though their final decision was announced, there was still a bit of dissatisfaction hanging in the air.

"The mystery of the vault does not end there," Chief Lucan continued, studiously ignoring the pang of possessing it for their burning curiosity, "My colleague, Dr. Aridana will explain what we found."

"Since we cannot access the inside of the vault, we've been collecting data as best as we can, even if we were confined outside of it. The results were greater than we ever imagined," the Asari scientist announced, her eyes gleaming. "We tried to determine how the vault does its terra-forming by monitoring the input and output of the monoliths. From the way it produces materials that cannot be made from those it took in and their estimated mass more than its inputs, we can think of two explanations: either it follows different rules of physics or it has a perfect energy-matter conversion."

"If it only has perfect conversion, it does not explain the quantity of the output," Chief Lucan argued. "Its output is greater than we expect from its input."

"Perhaps it has a greater store of energy to supplement it," Dr. Aridana countered.

"Or perhaps there's a wormhole inside its central chamber where an exchange of materials happens with another universe," Professor Henrik suggested.

"Nonsense. That wormhole would have to be intelligent in seeking out the necessary universe to get the necessary materials for this specific planet as if it's browsing in some multi-verse supermarket," Chief Lucan huffed and looked gravely at his colleague. "We're scientists, not writers."

The Nexus team started squabbling, getting increasingly heated as they threw science gibberish at each other. As they quarreled, Scott leaned back in his seat, feeling as though they had stumbled into something big. Something infinitely vast, outside anything they have expected to find but ill-equipped to deal with. And it's making him nervous.

_What exactly were they dealing with here?_

Captain Dunn rapped her knuckles loudly on the composite table. "This meeting is for reporting results, not for generating one. If you need to discuss among yourselves, then do it in your lab," she said to the scientists.

They stopped bickering immediately. "Then that's all we have to report for now," Dr. Aridana said while her two colleagues nodded in agreement.

"Anything else who'd like to report?" Captain Dunn asked around the room. "None? Alright. Our problems seem not to be ending but it cannot be denied that everyone had done a good job. Now we're finally able to breathe easier after a very long time."

* * *

AN: I can't upload a new chapter from a separate document. I have to overwrite old chapters. Does anyone has a solution to this problem?


	25. Chapter 25

At one in the morning, Scott finally finished the draft of his report. It'll need a once-over to correct the mistakes but after reporting at the Nexus and debriefing his crew, he's just too tired to continue. Sleep was pulling his lids close and he ran his hands over his face to stop it. It didn't work so he put his elbows on his desk and placed his heavy head over his hands. "SAM, can you go over this and mark the things that need to be corrected? I'll see it tomorrow," he instructed.

The globe-like projection on his left brightened as the AI replied. "Yes, Scott."

Scott sighed and pushed himself off the chair. He walked towards his bed, rubbing his eyes, when SAM spoke again. "One of the memories of Alec Ryder is now accessible. Do you wish me to play it now or tomorrow?"

Scott stopped in his tracks, not feeling sleepy anymore. Sadness wafted over him like a sea breeze as he remembered his father was dead and whatever he would hear from those logs would just be echoes of the past. Then the darker, uglier feelings arose, the ones he tried hard to bury, rose up, stronger and more potent as it festered in the recess of his mind and obliterating the love that gave his sadness a wistful edge. He remembered how SAM came to him; how Alec had forced him to depend on it. Those feelings he didn't voice out aloud; he knew people wouldn't understand why he'd be against something that was very helpful to them. Those people wouldn't understand the feeling of having their life ruled by someone else. Of standing in the shadow of a legend. Alec's family had revolved around Alec; where he went, there they'd be. He had nearly broken out but as usual, Alec had managed to draw him back and drag him all the way to a new galaxy. And then saddled him with his pet project.

Scott sighed and turned away. There was something shameful about reading something private. But still, Alec wouldn't leave him his private logs if he did not intend it to be read, would he?

He walked back to the desk and sat facing the AI node. "I am not going to see something embarrassing would I?"

"Please clarify."

This was one of the times he wished SAM was more than an AI, so it would not end up in situations where he had to spell things out, like right now.

"Just…go ahead, SAM," he relented, thinking his father would not choose something like an embarrassing memory to share with his son. As the lights of the AI spun, he leaned back in his seat as the recording lulled him into memories of his father.

_Alec is in his room at the Hyperion. It is a quiet, peaceful night that not even the hum of the engines disturbs it. He stands in front of the window where the planet he has dedicated his life for and ultimately rejected him, resides. And in that silence, he draw out his omnitool to record his last thoughts before they depart for the unknown._

_"The day is finally here. We're pushing off from Earth. We'll jump through the relays first and we'll hunker down for the long trip across dark space. It's daunting, thinking about the hopes and dreams of the Hyperion. I certainly have my own. I…wasn't the husband or the father I should've been."_

_He sighs, taking one last look at the planet they had called home. "Here's hoping. Here's hoping 600 years can change a man."_

The memory ended and Scott blinked awake. He stared at the wall in front of him as he forced himself to remember what he had seen. Then when he reached the end, he put his hand over his eyes and hissed, "Dad, you idiot."

"Pardon?" SAM asked.

Scott rubbed his eyes for a while before he answered. "Did anyone tell him we'd be all asleep on those 600 years?"

* * *

The Pathfinding Team had escorted Ambassador Rialla and her staff to Aya. As usual, they transferred out of the Tempest which docked at the edge of the city and boarded the city shuttles to arrive at the governor's tower.

The ambassador, an indigo-skinned Asari with no face markings, looked out the window at the city with the tall towers with their interlocking branches, full of people going on their daily lives without a care in the world and exclaimed to Scott beside her, "How is this possible? It looks like there's no war going on."

Scott smiled as he glanced at the scene outside. From the situation they came from, it did look like they were in a dream whenever they go to Aya. The city felt like one of the prosperous cities they have back in the Milky Way. Like Illium.

However, Illium did not have the fragile beauty that Aya has. Behind the lights, the well-kept gardens, the lively shops and the parties that frequently occur in it, there's an edge of desperation hanging in its air, like rock pressing against the glass.

Their shuttle touched down on the landing pad on the Governor's tower. The shuttle doors swung up and they disembarked. Efvra and his retinue were waiting for them below and upon seeing them, turned his head towards him and asked, "Is this your Ambassador?"

Scott nodded and gestured at the Asari beside him. "This is Ambassador Rialla. Ambassador, this is Evfra de Tarshav, leader of the Angaran Resistance and Protector of the city of Aya,"

Evfra smiled pleasantly to the Ambassador, which was a surprise. "Ambassador Rialla, on behalf of Governor Paraan and the people of Aya, I welcome you to our city," he said smoothly.

Scott kept his face blank, resisting the urge to raise his brow at his unexpected pleasant demeanor. He expected Evfra would try to sabotage every attempt of theirs to establish a relationship with his people.

The ambassador smiled back. "Thank you. Please extend my gratitude to your people for welcoming me to your city."

Evfra nodded. "I'll be escorting you to the Governor's office. Please follow me," he said and turned to lead them.

They walked on the pathway connecting the landing pad to the tower then boarded an elevator down to the middle of the tower where the office of the governor was located.

They stepped off the elevator and walked a short passage curving around to the governor's office. There was a window with wide lattices at the side where they could look at the city; at the towers full of colorful dots of people lounging on the balconies or shopping at stores running alongside the curve of the tower while drones carrying packages buzz in the sky like bees in a lazy summer and passing through the projections of ads, scrolling down the air like waterfalls.

Scott thought the window might be a security concern but he remembered that they couldn't see the inside of this tower when they looked out from the shuttles.

As they walked, the ambassador expressing her amazement at the city while Evfra grinned beside her. Scott had to admit, being in Aya was like being in the better parts of the Presidium. It's unbelievable, but it was undeniable which contributed to Aya's dream-like quality. From their few passes through the city, he hasn't seen any slums or sections which looked grimy like Zakera Ward. Perhaps they are at the base of the tower where they haven't explored yet.

He suddenly felt a mischievous itch to explore the city to look for something that will disprove its perfection.

They reached the office and when the doors slid open, revealing the governor and her staff waiting in line to greet the Nexus ambassador. While the representative of the Angara and the representative of the Milky Way races exchanged greetings, Scott looked around the spacious room and found someone he did not expect to be still among the living.

At the far side of the Angaran contingent stood Commander Do Xeel, who caught him looking at her. Her color rippled to acknowledge him.

The governor led them to another room with a white, oblong table and asked them to take their seats. Paaran Shie and the arbiters along with Evfra were seated on one side of the conference table while the Initiative representatives were on the other. After an exchange of greetings, both sides talked about the content of the accords. The governor was pleased when the ambassador stated their agreement to leave the vault to the Angara while the Initiative settles the planets, but balked when Ambassador Rialla asked for protection.

"Our forces are fully committed to protecting our own worlds," Governor Paaran said. "And even if we have people and ships to spare, I doubt it will make a difference. We have recently discovered that the Kett made their troops out of our own people. Commander Do Xeel informed me that this was why we have not been able to progress; the Kett knew our strategies and knew how to counter them. The Families will object on the expense of providing the ships needed and the people mustered to man them on behalf of strangers on a plan that will not guarantee their survival nor success of their mission. I am sorry, but I cannot oblige you."

Scott interjected. "If the reason why you haven't been able to win this war is that the Kett knew your strategies, then what about learning new ones?" he suggested. "We could offer to share our own way of warfare."

The pupils of her eyes widened as she stared at him. "I suppose it can help," she said slowly. "Your tactic to infiltrate the Kett base was after all successful. She turned to Ambassador Rialla, "We approve of conducting joint exercises of our forces. In return, we will put your settlements under our protection. I will task this arrangement to Commander Do Xeel," she said, turning to the commander who flashed her agreement.

An idea formed in his head. "Can we do this at Eos?" he added, thinking of Bradley. "The person who knew most of our strategies is currently the director of our colony there. Unfortunately, he can't go off-planet because of the threat of the Kett outpost nearby."

The corners of the governor's lips quirked up. "Then the destruction of the outpost would have to be done first. We'll send a force to clear the planet. Evfra will assist you with this."

Evfra stared at her with his mouth slightly open. The governor met his stare and held it. He turned slowly away from her to face them. "As you say," he murmured, his skin murky as he frowned.

The Initiative finally safe, Scott leaned back in his seat and tuned out as the governor and the ambassador talked about trade, laws of conduct between parties and going over Angaran customs with the arbiters. They were still not finished when the light darkened outside the webbing like windows. The governor called the meeting to end and suggested they should continue the next day. She also informed the ambassador that they have already prepared a level to use for their embassy and they can retire there if they wished. As for Scott, she directed him to a tavetaan if he and his team wanted to have some recreational activities.

As the delegates poured out of the room, Scott sought out the fleet commander, who had anticipated his questions. She gestured at him to join her and walked to a corner of the office, near the window where they could look at the city outside.

"Commander Do Xeel," Scott greeted warmly at the Angaran fleet commander. He didn't particularly like her much, but he was extremely astounded at her survival. "It's great to see you."

She smiled, her face glowing. "Same to you. I am glad you are here because it meant you have succeeded in delivering the Moshae safe to us."

"I thought you were dead. You sound like you didn't expect to live last time we talked."

"I thought so too. But I was fated to live a little longer, I suppose," she answered and smiled wanly. "A talent and a curse, to survive again and again only to see the people around you die."

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said somberly and internally thanked his good fortune that he was not made to experience that yet. "How did you survive? Did the rest of the fleet made it with you?"

"Some of it. We engaged the destroyer until your ship was safely away, then played tag with it around the planet. Then we slipped away one by one. We were able to get away just in time to the other carrier before the Armada arrived."

He was struck dumb at her sheer audacity. He thought the Kett was invincible, yet here she was, free from their grasp. It took a lot of self-control to face death in the face without breaking in fear, and she had it.

"Wow. I…don't know what to say except be extremely impressed," he answered, his respect for her rising.

The commander looked pensively over the city, which was starting to light up, looking like an enchanted forest with the drones blinking lights like fireflies. "I had to. I had to get my fleet home. I already lost so much, I refused to lose one more," she said, her glow growing mellow. "I left here with four carriers filled with thirty-eight cruisers and two hundred twenty-eight frigates with another fleet. I returned here with a third of mine and a whole fleet lost."

He was about to express his sympathy with her loss but a thought occurred to him. He remembered her hostility when they first met and her irritation when they reported that they could not escape after the destroyer's attack. If he had not taken care to secure the Moshae in their ship, would she not have sacrificed her ships and left them to fend for themselves, thus saving her ships by sacrificing theirs? If they let her take the Moshae, would she uphold their promise to ally with them after they were killed?

It was troubling to think about and his awareness of it was starting to sour their alliance, which was supposed to be based on trust and friendship. They must trust each other or not at all. There were no half measures.

His generous heart would have liked him to have an optimistic view of it, but his cynical brain was doing its best to strangle it.

"And that's just because the Kett were holding back," the commander added, oblivious to his conflicting feelings.

He went still. "Holding…back?"

The commander's speckles brightened. "Before the attack on the facility, some of us believed they were simply lenient, hoping that they still had a heart beneath their vile exterior. We never expected they wanted us alive just to make more of them," she spat.

Ever since they met the destroyer, he thought about things the Kett can do with their destructive power by imagining what they would do if they have that power. His musings had not given him any solutions yet on better ways to protect themselves, but it revealed, in his opinion, a glaring flaw in the Kett's strategy. "Did they never tried to intimidate you with their power, like using their weapon to destroy one city and force you all to surrender?" he asked. If they were the Kett, they would have easily forced the surrender of the Angara by threatening complete destruction of one of their homeworlds. It's not like the Kett cared about being decent.

"They did not have the destroyers until thirty years ago. By then, they were less eager to capturing us, preferring to take the vaults."

He frowned. Did the Kett had a change of heart? Or they weren't as focused on complete assimilation of the Angara as they thought? What was really the Kett's true intentions?

He rubbed his head and dropped this line of thought. He couldn't guess at the Kett's true intentions without additional information so he changed the subject. "What's this about a lost fleet?"

The commander's face was half in shadow, but her eyes were bright as she answered, "You remember that I had to lure the destroyer out of the system? That was the purpose of the second fleet. The plan was for them to capture the vault on Remav. This vault was of special interest to the Kett and so we made a play to get it. They succeeded in drawing out the destroyer but," she held up her hands and let it fall, "something happened and none survived. We have no records about their battle."

He remembered the report of the Nexus team during the debriefing. "We've discovered that a planet on the system got destroyed."

"Yes. We saw it too. But none can get closer to investigate with its star currently unstable. We'll have to do long-distance observation with it to find what happened."

People had filled out of the room until they were one of the few left. Governor Paaran craned her neck around and saw them talking. She called the commander over to her.

Commander Do Xeel turned to Scott and smiled in apology. "Excuse me. I have to go. Perhaps we'll continue our talk tomorrow?"

Scott nodded. "No problem. See you then."

Commander Do Xeel made as if to turn away, but stopped and returned to him. "I'm sorry for treating you coldly when we first met," she confessed. "It was nothing personal; it was for the governor who I thought intended to insult me by foisting a foreigner on me to do my job."

"I understand; think nothing of it," he assured her. If he was in her shoes, he'd probably react the same way too.

She moved away to go to the Governor's side and he walked out of the office to find his crew.

* * *

The tavetaan was located on one of the recreation-oriented towers. To go there from the governor's tower, they had to ride the trains, which felt more like riding a roller-coaster. Levels of the tower were dedicated to all forms of entertainment they could think of. There were arcades and opera halls and bars of every type. There were theaters with immersive environments, showcasing their vids through holo-projections. But more numerous were venues holding competitions of everything anyone can think of. Poetry competitions, singing competitions, fighting competitions, story-telling competitions, design competitions, cooking competitions and all competitions they could think of. Most of it was undertaken by the males, while the females cheer on the sidelines or sat aloof. At every level, there seems to be at least one competition where it seems they are broadcasted live to other Angaran worlds. All of this made Scott think that the Angara seems to be very fond of competition and noted that perhaps being competitive was a trait they value.

Far above them were supply ships plying to and fro the moon, twinkling like slow-moving meteors at night. Aya became the main manufacturing center of the Angaran world, due to Aya being placed in the safest part of the cluster. The Onaon system was like an island in the middle of the river of the Shroud which flowed from the fringes of the Heleus cluster to plunge at the black hole in its center. Aya was hidden from outside due to space being bent by both the Shroud and the black hole. Since the space around Aya was always turbulent, the Kett couldn't penetrate it, not even with their destroyer, even if they knew where to hit. But the Angara has found a way to somehow calm the turbulence made by the Shroud, using the space to sail from Aya to their homeworlds, delivering supplies and support for the war.

As for the city itself, it was made of towers with interweaving passages between them. It was mostly made of a white, translucent, material in the daytime, the better to show off the more colorful Angara. Lines of color moved and swirled with the movement of the people living in the city. Thus, the color of the city varies each day. It was the first instance where Scott saw a city that incorporated the people living in it as part of its decor. Watching the city change colors was as mesmerizing as a dreaming octopus.

Most of the shops and restaurants are placed on the sides of the tower so there were balconies to dine in should people wish for fresh air, under a canopy of green and blue glass. There was an abundance of plants used as decoration, most of it with waxy, dark green leaves, which gave the effect of walking through a jungle if the floor was made of marble. In one of levels, Scott found his team seated on an open-air bistro.

Scott slid onto an unoccupied stool and leaned onto the edge of the table. "So, how's being a tourist?" he asked with a grin. It dropped when his crew answered him with miserable faces. "What?"

At the other end, Gil raised his mug filled a bluish, frothing liquid. "The drinks are nice, but the food could use some spice. We can't live on alcohol alone." He slid a plate containing something like shelled snails, if the snails were striped yellow and green and drizzled with cream. "Here, try it yourself."

Scott took a prong from the basket of utensils and prod at one. He twirled the food with his prod first. "Looks appetizing," he remarked sarcastically before putting it in his mouth. He expected to immediately vomit, but that did not happen. Aside from being chewy, he couldn't taste anything. He swallowed and smacked his lips. "Hmm, delicious. Tastes like water."

Angaran food was not that bad really, but it was bland despite having a wonderful aroma. Their drinks were the only consumables that could satisfy the Tempest's crew's tastes.

Marcus grinned and then cast a look around them. Then from underneath the table, he brought out a few foil packets and slid them across to him. 'Here, put this on that."

"Did you nick this from our kitchen?" Scott said as he took the packets.

Marcus shrugged. "It's either that or starve to death."

Scott tore off a corner of one and found sriracha, which he poured over his dish. It tasted miles better now.

"So, where'd you all been?" he asked his crew between bites. He hadn't realized he was so hungry.

"We've been around this tower. Did you know the Angara loves to compete a lot? We've seen at least fifteen competitions from this tower alone."

"And the stores. You should have seen the things they're selling. I'd wish the Nexus hurry up with the currency exchange," Cora said.

Scott frowned down at the dish he was eating. "Then how did you pay for this?"

They grinned at Vetra. "Don't be mad at me Scott, but I've traded away some of our junk, she said. "Nothing important. The Angara thinks they're novelty items. I'll turn over the money to you later."

They heard steps behind them and turned around to find K running towards them. When she stopped in front of them, she dropped her hands on her knees and panted.

"Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you," Cora asked, concerned.

"Sorry. I had to help out a…friend," K replied and stood up. The buttons on her jacket were mismatched.

"A friend?" Scott asked with a smile as the others scooted to make room for her. "You've already made friends? Lucky you." Apparently, for some reason, he was destined to only interact with Angara who is either hostile, skeptical, mocking or imperious, only needing him to run errands.

K shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "Er, no, not exactly a friend."

"Then what?"

K took a seat beside Scott. "Something. I'm not sure. It all started when I caught Suvi one day licking a rock from Eos."

Suvi who was seated in front of Gil sputtered over her drink as they glanced at her.

"You were licking a rock?" Marcus beside her asked with narrowed eyes.

Suvi gave K a slightly dismayed look before turning to answer Marcus. "Licking is a valid way to determine rocks from fossils," she said defensively."You can tell its basic mineral composition by how it sticks to your tongue." She added sheepishly, "I did it unconsciously. I forgot it was a Heleus rock."

Scott looked from Suvi to K. "And what does that had to do with you?"

"She said there are some things your senses pick up that the scanner can't and those data shouldn't be wasted just because of a different methodology," K answered. "I said that's a nifty trick so I thought I'd use it too."

"On people?" Cora asked, both indignant and astounded.

"Well, why not?" K said with a shrug and dug her fork into her food. "I certainly discovered some things that you can't get by using a scanner. For instance, your tongue will feel tingly if you lick them. Apparently, they produce electricity when aroused. Also, licking is their gesture for intimacy, unlike some of us where kissing is the precursor to intimacy. But kissing is just a greeting to them."

"I think every race sees licking each other as intimacy," Marcus said, holding his sides, trying to keep his laughter in.

K beamed at him. "So you do understand. Anyway, me licking him made him think that I was interested in him and so, being just as curious as I am, we followed where that led."

They stared at her, Cora making a sharp intake of breath. "You did not," she breathed out, challenging her to disprove it to her disbelieving face.

K smiled triumphantly. "I did! I did. Why not? Do you know I've found?" she asked them, with a mischievous smile, looking from one to the other.

"Nope," Scott replied immediately.

"No," Marcus seconded.

"We already know what happens between two people in a room. We really don't need to hear the details," Vetra added.

K's looked from one disinterested face to the other and her smile dropped. "I don't believe this. I can't believe this! I can't believe you're here, about to hear one of the most exciting discoveries we have in our history after we arrived here and you can't even bother to listen?"

"Can't you just put it in a paper?" Marcus whined. "Not all of us have to hear it."

"Then what are we here for if not making discoveries?" K insisted, almost shouting. "Why are we here for if we're just going through everything blind, deaf and dumb to everything around us? Aren't you curious? Don't you want to unravel the mysteries of this galaxy?"

"Alright, K. Let's hear it then," Scott said, which made the others groan. "C'mon, guys, what can I do?" He asked them. "She's that dedicated. Do you want to waste her efforts?"

"Fine," Vetra relented, like a defeated parent worn down by their child's antics. "Alright, K. What else did you found?"

K's smiled and widened. "They use electricity during sex! He said they have to stimulate each other via electricity to induce bonding!" she announced happily, which made her companions groan again, with some like Scott who lowered their head to their face. But she ignored that and blathered on. "Sadly, it doesn't go well with us Asari. He showed me his electricity thingy and when I tried to show my biotic thingy while he was on me, he flew out the window. Mass effect, you know. Electricity and biotics just don't mix well."

They stared at her again. "Wait, you said he flew out the window?" Scott asked, with a glance all around the towers around them with no ground-level building on sight. "Where are you when this happened?"

"In his apartment, of course. Over there," she said and pointed at one of the towers near the horizon. She was pointing near the top though.

They gaped at it for a second then started interrogating her. "What happened to him? Is he dead?" Scott asked while the others frantically tried to contact their ambassador regarding a possible crisis.

"Oh, he's alive. He landed on top of a passing train below. The Angara can survive falling from ten floors up. It's the extra joint in their legs, you see," she explained, which made them relax a little.

"So, where's he now?" Cora asked.

"He's in jail. When he fell out the window, he was naked and then he landed squatting on the roof of the train. Which has a clear roof with uh, commuters underneath."

They gaped at her again, but with their eyes wider.

"The train immediately stopped," she continued, due to their silence. "Then their police showed up. You know, the big, mean Angara who doesn't like us very much? Anyway, they had him hauled to jail for public indecency. That big Angara isn't very nice to his own people either. when I arrived there to give him clothes, I heard him say to poor -, "Congratulations, you've lived long enough to be an embarrassment."

"Yeah. That's something Evfra would say," Scott said mechanically. He was still bothered by the image of the Angara falling on the clear train roof and the commuters' probable reactions.

"It is? Well, he sure is an equal opportunity asshole."

Marcus started laughing.

"So you had a fun time," Cora said uncomfortably. "Lesson learned. Do not have relations with the Angara until we know possible risks. Now, can we move on?"

"That's not what the lesson is," K protested.

Vetra put a hand to her temple. "Oh, spirits. Is there more?" she exclaimed.

"Asari can mate with them. Isn't that great? This means my race can survive. We are not doomed to be inbred," K pronounced, waving her arms up.

"Congratulations, from the people who can't breed with them," Vetra said pointedly.

"I thought you'd be more sympathetic, Vetra," K said, hurt. "After all, your ark hasn't arrived yet and there's too little of you to maintain the quality of your genetic pool."

"And just like that," the Turian clicked her talons, "this conversation turned depressing." this was followed by a somber silence as the implications of the missing arks sank in.

"We'll find them, Vetra, don't worry," Scott said. "But what could have been taking them so long? Do you think the Shroud has something to do with it?"

"Maybe," Cora answered. "Maybe they haven't found a way to get in."

"That's certainly better than the alternative," Vetra said. They agreed in silence brought by a fear that if they said that possibility aloud, then it might become true.

"I wonder where the Turian ark is," Scott said.

Not one of them had an answer so he turned his attention to the sky, wondering if one of the lights twinkling above held the secret of the arks. But the void remained silent.

K cleared her throat. "Anyway, if you want to have a go at the Angara, I've made a battery you can use," she said, waving the gadget in their face while they stared at her.


	26. Chapter 26

As part of their campaign to drum up support for them from the Angaran populace, the Pathfinder team undertook some errands for the Angara. The Angaran government did not ask more from them of course but the Initiative was counting of having done enough good deeds with their people, that if the Angara decided in the future to evacuate the cluster, they would not forget to take their new friends with them. The errands were nothing complicated, mainly investigations and fetch tasks Aya for some reason did not find compelling to do.

Then the Moshae made a request to them to fetch a group of scholars to help her with the vaults. So the Pathfinding team along with Jaal went to the Angaran homeworld in the Nol system to get them.

"We're approaching Havarl, Pathfinder," Kallo announced from the helm. Scott jogged from the research center and stopped before the viewscreen to see for himself the home of the Angara.

"Okay. What kind of planet are we looking at?" Scott asked, looking at the ball of blue-green moon hanging on a field of stars beside a gas giant with many orange bands like a tabby.

"Havarl is one of the many moons of a gas giant in the Faroang system," Suvi answered and looked at her readouts. "It's a garden world with scans indicating dense vegetation and abundant water." She paused and pouted at the data her console was showing her. "There's also signs of life but strangely, no marks of civilization."

Scott moved over to her side to read her scans while Kallo frowned at the vidscreen. "It's perfect for life. Why would the Angara abandon it?" he asked, confused, he who grew up in a lush jungle planet.

"We'd need to study it at the surface," Suvi suggested, her eyes bright as she read the scans longer. "Perhaps a disaster has occurred which does not make it pleasant for them?"

Scott opens his mouth to answer but someone has spoken first.

"That disaster was the Cataclysm," said a purring voice. He turned his head and saw Jaal behind them, looking at the moon, his eyes glinting by the light of the vidscreen as he moved forward. "A hundred years ago, the vault malfunctioned and made the planet swallow itself up," he told them. "Some of the plants survived but it grew wild and malformed until it covered the whole world." he returned his gaze back at the viewscreen and sighed. "There's nothing there now that could be recognized as once a home for my people."

Suvi turned slowly back to Havarl. "Oh. That's so sad," she said to it.

As Jaal looked at their home with a wistful look, Scott remembered about Earth and what would it have looked like now, six hundred years on. His family mostly lived on space stations, but he tried to spend as much of his vacation down there than anywhere else. Though the Milky Way offered more exciting and exotic locales for any trip he could imagine, there was still something different about just sitting at an Earth beach, watching its sunsets, the sand underneath your feet the same sands which had supported countless humans for many millennia and which would always be theirs. Some would scoff at that, calling it an idle fancy, but for him whose life had frequently involved aliens, going back to Earth helped him from preventing his identity as a human from being lost due to frequent dealing with aliens. Living in exile was like being unmoored, and Earth was like the north star he could turn to when lost and a point of reference he could always count on wherever his journeys would take him.

Would Earth had survived and overgrown with centuries worth of development? Or would it have tried to look the same as possible, despite the passing of the years? Ridiculous of course; other generations of people would have existed, with different needs and interests and they would change Earth to fit them. It's extremely selfish to halt the change just so you could have something as you remembered them, even if you wouldn't be alive anymore.

Heaviness descended upon him as he realized there was nothing on Earth that would be recognized as home, if they manage to make contact with the Milky Way. It was creeping on the edge of his mind, like a shadow when the light was waning, bringing things he had kept in the dark for too long. Then he caught himself before it could overwhelm him. He shuffled his feet and cleared his throat and tried not to look too doleful just looking at a vid of an alien moon, or else they would ask questions he did not want to answer.

No one noticed him as they were also absorbed with thoughts on their own home.

Jaal turned to Scott. "I should warn you, there are many Roekaar hiding in the jungle. You may want to be heavily armed."

The sadness was completely banished at this new information. "What's a Roekaar?" Scott asked.

Jaal fidgeted and made darting glances around as if looking for an exit. Scott could see his skin turning murky with shame and fear and he grew more alert, fixing his stare on him. "It's a…group of fighters that oppose all non-Angarans," Jaal finally answered although his words stiff. "And those who help them."

He was tempted to raise a brow at him. "And your people just allow them to?"

Jaal bristled and looks at him with eyes bright and pupils turned to slits. "They had split from the Resistance. They are not governed by us and do not share our goals or views."

It seemed like handwashing to him. But seeing Jaal's heightened color, he'd have to work carefully to get what they needed out of him. "Will they still attack even if we bring an Angara with us?"

"Yes, unfortunately. They have a..rigid view of friendship."

There was a lot Jaal was not saying. And he was tired of being in the dark and walking on eggshells, not knowing when he would take a step too far and be scolded for it. "Help me out here, Jaal," he said, sounding overwhelmed. "To protect ourselves, I need to know exactly what they are."

"No," Jaal said firmly, and he went back to his conflicted color, with bright spots of uncertainty added. "I'm not in authority to discuss them. Perhaps you can ask later at Aya," he said and walked away before Scott could ask again.

"That's helpful," Scott muttered when he was out of earshot. Suvi and Kallo watched him go out of sight then Suvi turned to him. "Another enemy we don't know?" she asked, looking worriedly at him. "Are you going to be alright down there?"

Scott shrugged. "Eh. It's just another day at work," he assured her. "I mean, have we ever been welcomed warmly for once?"

Kallo smirked and shifted in his seat to make himself comfortable. "He's right. We're not really popular around these parts."

Suvi finally smiled and resumed her task. Scott nodded at their pilot. "Set us down, Kallo," he instructed and called to prepare his team.

* * *

For this jaunt, Scott took Drack and Marcus and they waited on the cargo bay for the Tempest to finish its landing cycle. The four of them did last-minute checks on their equipment as they waited for the light vibratory hum to be silent and decompression to commence. A few seconds later, the ship's underside hinged open, making a walkway for them to disembark. Jaal hopped out of the ship swiftly and they followed soon after. Remembering his warning, Scott instinctively raised his gun as he moved out and then stopped in awe when he saw where they were.

They found themselves in a cleared patch in the midst of a bioluminescent jungle. With Havarl's abundant liquid water, its sky was covered completely with clouds, cloaking it in perpetual twilight. When the clouds part, the gas giant's purple bands can be seen, rising in the sky.

Condensation immediately formed on his helmet as soon as they stepped clear of the Tempest. His hand let go of his gun to wipe the dew of his visor. SAM beeped and said that although the atmosphere was compatible with their physiology, it advised them to wear their suits at all times due to the effects of ultraviolet light on unprotected skin. Though visible light cannot penetrate deep into its atmosphere, Havarl's biome survived on intense ultraviolet light. With the cloud cover, heat was trapped on the planet, making it very humid.

He almost didn't hear SAM's warning as he admired his surroundings. There were tall fern-like trees standing over them, its undersides lit with many lights beside big stalks of glowing fungi. There were some normal looking plants but they were mostly in shades of violet, pink or blue.

"Wow. I've never seen this many plants ever since we left Earth," Scott remarked as he looked around.

"Look, I don't care if you're all saps for this but can we keep out of this stupid rain?" Drack grumbled as he wiped at his visor angrily with a splayed hand. Scott smiled and moved on, opening his scanner to get some data on the plants as they walked.

Though their data said this vigorous vegetation was caused by genetic mutations running rampant, he thought he wouldn't mind them staying here longer. There were so many interesting things popping on the readouts that even SAM was chattering nonstop about each and every finding. Havarl was so full of life unlike the mostly barren rocks they encounter and try to make a home. That is, until they kept getting attacked every few feet by giant, green bugs called challyrions, rylkors which looks like a dark beige pachylosaurus with stegosaurus spines. Sometimes an eiroch, an extremely mean hulking giant rhinoceros-ape-whatever, would be crashing through the trees towards them. Scott had jungle training and knew that there was a great number of animals to be encountered in the jungle, but even he thought the attacks were excessive. They moved as carefully as they knew how but they keep getting attacked every few steps as if the very animals were deranged at their presence.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" he finally shouted as he shot their fifteenth camouflaging, pouncing animal in five minutes. The animal whimpered until it died from its flowing wounds. "Jaal!" he called out. "Are the animals supposed to act like this?"

"No. I have only observed this today," Jaal answered from somewhere in the foliage. Scott looked around but cannot find their Angaran contact. He craned his neck to and fro until he caught movement. He focused on the movement until he could trace a monocle, then an Angaran body shape. "Jaal?" he asked it.

Light flickered on it, then the correct color on his helmet emerged, making him look like a floating head. The colors shifted until his body appeared and then they were looking at the Angara they knew. "Yes?" Jaal said, his color back to normal and not blending in with the surroundings.

Scott put his hands on his hips and stared openmouthed at him. "Camouflage," he said, referring to the color change.

"That is correct," SAM said. "Prior to revealing himself, I detect only small differences in color composition to distinguish Jaal from his surroundings. I also find little differences in his temperature to the ambient temperature."

A thought popped into his head. "Is this why we keep getting attacked and he doesn't?" he asked SAM.

"Yes."

Jaal put his hand over his visor to wipe the dew off it. Now he could see them clearly, he said, "The unchanging color of your armor marks is making you conspicuous to the animals' sight. It is the color of dead things. You should not be moving and yet you do. This is why the animals are excessively attracted to you."

Scott pointed at the carcasses all around them with his pistol. "Do both of you meant to say that this is just the animals going "oooh, blacky!" at me?"

Jaal cocked his head at him. "Forgive me. I didn't really understand what you just said."

Scott was too pissed to explain cultural expressions."Ah. Nevermind."

"Hey, Jaal. Those wouldn't try to attack us, right?" Marcus said and pointed up the break of the foliage where they saw a flock of massive animals flying above them, looking like a school of manta rays with many flapping wings. From their distance, these would be humungous if it landed near them.

"Ah, no. They are tame and eat only plants," Jaal answered and moved on, slipping silently between the leaves.

"Oh, that's lucky. Even with Drack here, I don't think we can take those on," Marcus said as he followed.

Drack snorted. "Speak for yourself. Though I'd demand we do it in the open. This is just cheating," he said, taking a swipe at a broad leaf in his way.

They heard growling in the shadows around them. Then chittering and leaves rustling as another round of animals were coming for them.

Scott took one look behind them and walked faster, closer to Jaal. "How far is Daar Pelaav anyway?" he asked him, suddenly feeling anxious to get out of the forest he previously admired minutes ago.

"Not far. In fact, it's just over the clearing," Jaal replied unconcernedly.

After wading through the thick foliage and encountering another round of animals which they turned into corpses, they finally reached the base. Which is at the top of a giant tree.

Marcus whistled as he looked up the tree taking up much of the sky. "Wow. That's big. That's gotta be at least a hundred meters tall and thirty meters thick."

The tree was a beginning of a forest of giant trees, though none as big as the one in front of them. They hadn't realized it then as their way was chock full of vegetation that blocked their line of sight every few meters. Vegetation that seemed oversized, now that he thought about it. Some of the leaves were large and wide enough to wrap over them. With its dark shadows hanging over them, it was as if they've been miniaturized and set in an overgrown backyard.

"Daar Pelaav is up there," Jaal said, pointing up to a dwelling high up the branches. Then he pointed at the trunk. "Here's the way to it."

The "way" was nothing but well-worn holes to use as handholds as they climbed. Unfortunately, it was tailored to Angaran hands and feet. They looked up from the trunk then up into the canopy where they saw that the lowest branch was too high for their jetpacks to reach.

Scott stared long at the tracks they're supposed to use to get up to the station then turned to Jaal. "Can you do me a favor? If you can get up there and throw us down a rope, that would be great."

* * *

Fortunately for them, Daar Pelaav has a lift for their cargo. Jaal radioed in the station and it came creaking down to the ground. They went on it quickly before the animals find them and waited as the lift pulled them steadily up until they arrived at the top of the nearest branch. The lift stopped and they saw a group of buildings built on the branches of the giant tree, with roofs sweeping down to the eaves and tapering away and the central beam curved to a point to keep out the incessant rain of Havarl.

Two Angaras in matching blue and green armor were waiting for them at the landing and greeted them. They approached them cautiously as Jaal explained their business. "Yes, you were expected. Evfra sent word of your arrival," the taller of them replied, glancing at them curiously now that they have established themselves as friendly. They gestured for them to follow and escorted them to one of the buildings through a winding path that seemed to be woven from vines but felt solid beneath their boots. They passed several Angarans inside other buildings build over the branches like wasp nests. Heads poked out of windows to stare at their visitors.

They arrived at the observatory where their contact was. Their guides left them and they walked up the platform into the facility.

There were only three people inside: a grumpy shuttle controller on a room to their left, an archeologist at the back in front of a large machine at the other end of the hall, and the head of the station standing in front of a large screen. She spun around in surprise when she saw them come in.

"Jaal? What are you doing here?" a female asked her fellow Angaran, her skin humming as she looked at Jaal. Then her eyes darted from him to them and her glow disappeared. "And in the company of these…people?"

Scott kept his face still, wondering if her reaction was merely being offended from accepting help from a foreigner as Commander Do'Xeel had or she really didn't like them.

"Kiiran, this is Pathfinder Ryder and his team from the Milky Way," Jaal said, introducing him to her. "Ryder, this is Kiiran Dals, lead scientist at Daar Pelaav. I had accompanied her and her team on some of their expeditions before."

"Nice to meet you," Scott said to her politely, figuring they would lose nothing by being polite and much if he wasn't.

Her pupils narrowed at him as her light flickered on her purple skin with grey and white stripes. "Really? I cannot tell with your…alien skin so I cannot be certain of your sincerity," she said as she searched his face beneath his visor. She glanced at Jaal. "But I trust Jaal and assume that you meant well."

Scott also glanced at Jaal. Jaal seemed to coincidentally know a lot of important people. Which worked out great for them but just how well-connected was he?

Jaal spoke quickly to smooth over the building hostility. "We've come here because the Moshae requests scholars to assist her in deciphering the vaults. Ryder is here because he and his AI can open the vaults for us."

"So I've heard," Kiiran answered, looking over at Scott, with the same offended tone he heard from Commanders Do Xeel and Heckt when they first met. "But I cannot help you. My scientists were lost investigating a power fluctuation deep in the jungle. I have not heard from them for a long time and with the current state of the wildlife, I cannot venture out to search for them. However, there are the sages still at Mithrava. Look for the head scholar. Maybe they will agree to your request."

"Sorry, what's Mithrava?" Scott asked.

"An old Remnant structure they have managed to control for their own use. You will find it here." Kiiran opened her omnitool and tapped on it to send a nav point. Jaal's omnitool beeped and he tapped on it to show a blinking light on a grid, indicating the location of the sages.

"And your missing scientists?" Scott asked.

She looked at him with a start. "What about them?"

"Surely, you can't allow them to be lost forever, do you? Will you give me their location so if we happen to run across them we'll send them back to you?"

Her cat-like eyes searched him, sharp as if on a prey, but opened her omnitool to give a nav point. "Here's their last known location." She then closed her omnitool and said, "I did not think you, an alien, to help us on such small matters as this. Do you then expect a reward?"

Scott made a wave of his hand. He would have offered even if there was no diplomatic benefit to do so, but offering help may help ingratiate themselves to the Angara. And even if they wouldn't, he wouldn't mind so he lost nothing by offering. "Keep it. I'm really just a helpful alien."

"I see," she said, her color softening a bit. "Then I wish you success."


	27. Chapter 27

"So, Mithrava," Scott asked Jaal as they walked out of the observatory. "Do you know anything else about it?"

"It's a Remnant Tower where some of our elder scholars live," Jaal said. "It's nearby, hardly a day's walk. You'll know it when you see it, as it's the tallest structure around here but," He looks at the horizon, where it had grown dark with the coming rain, "as it is, we must trust on the map Kiiran gave us."

Scott remembered what they've gone through to get there and the idea of walking in the forest floor again filled him with dismay. "Any path we can take aside from walking through the forest?"

Jaal smirked at him and opened his omni-tool to consult his map. "There are the sky bridges connecting each tree. The tree nearest Mithrava should take us to a fifteen-minute walk to the site."

They followed Jaal to a pad on the furthest tip of the branch. A lone guard was there patrolling who looked startled upon seeing them. She was standing before a peg with a fat rope tied to it leading to another one of those gigantic trees far from them, barely visible in the low lying clouds.

Jaal walked to the peg and said, "This is the sky bridge. It leads to a tree north which has a connection with the shortest route to Mithrava." He turned to the guard. "How's the other side?"

The guard raised her gun and looked at the other end through the scope. After a few seconds, she lowered it. "The path is safe. I will watch over you as you pass."

Scott moved closer to the edge and saw empty air underneath the rope. He hoped the rope was a leading line for a cable car not…that.

His hope fell a long way down like the drop from their tree.

Marcus peered past the railings and said, "We can hook ourselves to it and zipline the way there?" he suggested hopefully. Scott answered him with a glower.

Meanwhile, Jaal had hopped on the rope, grasping it with his feet, and tested his weight on it. He took a few steps forward, moving on the rope as easily as a trapeze artist, before craning his head back to them. "It still holds. However, I advise you to watch out for swoopers as you walk."

Scott stifled his growl and stopped his hand from reaching his face upon hearing another group of aggressive animals. It seemed Havarl was a planet that just kept on giving. "Jaal, we're not exactly Angara, you know?" he said, raising his boot to show him while keeping his annoyance out of his tone.

Jaal's widened slightly as he looked at them fully. "Ah. Forgive me. I sometimes forget our things do not work for you as it is for us. I'm afraid we have no choice but to proceed on foot," he said and hopped off to them.

Scott looked around in frustration and saw the small shuttles on a landing pad near them, being tended to a pair of mechanics. "Any chance we could borrow that?" he said, cocking at the shuttle.

Jaal glanced at it and turned away. "In normal weather, we could use the skimmers to fly above the treetops," he answered. "However, in this weather, it is inadvisable. Also, Mithrava emits a strong magnetic field which will interfere greatly with navigation as soon as we get close to it. I'm sorry, but if we need to get there safely, we have to travel on foot."

"As safe as we could with all the crazy animals and Roekaar just lurking around?"

Jaal smiled. "Those you can fight. But not suddenly crashing when your shuttle dies mid-air. It's up to you how we go there."

Scott sighed. They really had no choice but to go the hard way. "Lead the way, Jaal," he said defeatedly.

They went down the tree the same way and trudged through the jungle. Havarl would have been a paradise if it wasn't for its irritating wildlife persistently attacking them every few feet while being perpetually wet, slippery, and balmy. After the first attack, Jaal looked back at them. "Ryder, now that it seems we cannot avoid being attacked upon, I strongly urge you to use quieter weapons. Not your guns."

Scott was picking up the ejected heat sink from the forest floor. Now that he thought about it, perhaps the animals were attracted to the gunfire. "Shit. I expected the shots would have scared them away."

Jaal made a nervous snort. "I wouldn't worry so much if it were only the animals that were attracted. I'm thinking of the Roekaar."

He instinctively clutched his gun tighter and glanced around. As did the other two. "You think they're here now?" he whispered.

"You wouldn't know you'd been spotted until it's too late," Jaal said and looked up the canopy. "Watch out from above. They sometimes travel through the branches. But do not forget to check the ground. They've dug tunnels with false doors and will surprise you."

He didn't warn them about this when they were coming. "I would have thought all the noise we're making going to Daar Pelav would have made them notice us by now," he said, his tone scolding him for just telling this now.

"They wouldn't dare attack us when we're so near the observatory," Jaal answered. "You didn't see them but there were sentries posted around our way there." He pointed in front of him. "However, our destination is going to take us across Roekaar territory so it is extremely important we go as silently as possible."

"Couldn't you have warned me of this earlier?"

Jaal blinked, taken aback from hearing finally an angry tone from him. "I'm sorry. I've thought we were just going to Daar Pelav so I didn't think it necessary to inform you of their tactics. If we were attacked, we would not be the first ones to engage."

As Jaal faced him looking sincerely sorry for the omission, Scott thought he seemed reluctant to volunteer information about the Roekaar. This reserved manner was so different when they first met, where Jaal volunteered their history with little prompting. Perhaps his loyalty to his own kind was still greater than his trust in him, he thought. Trust that was brought low during the events at Prachonyi, though he didn't think he did wrong there. Something about the Roekaar clearly bothered Jaal and if he wanted to know it, he needed to proceed carefully. "Next time, let me be the judge of that," he said, softer than he first wanted.

Jaal showed his acquiescence and turned back to scouting ahead of them. He wasn't sure if that meant Jaal would truly confide in him. He knew the reason he needed Jaal to trust him was part self-interest and if he was in his shoes, he had no reason to give strangers information more than he thought necessary for the situation, like what Jaal did earlier. He didn't know what exactly was the debt Jaal has from him that made him still help them despite the Moshae being saved, but he figured he'd keep pushing on it to know its limits.

Scott pushed those thoughts aside for a later time and focused on where they currently were now. He looked at the Angara in front of him, his whole figure rippling and blending with the dappling light from the glowing plants around them. If he was an indication of what they would expect from the Roekaar, it would be extremely difficult to reach Mithrava. He remembered the sky bridge and wished they've risked that instead, even with the swoopers about.

His companions meanwhile didn't share his feelings. When Jaal said they'd have to use quieter weapons, Marcus grinned and put out his Omni-blades, which materialized in glowing orange along his forearms. "Been wanting to use this," he said, admiring the pronged and pointed ends, which sizzled as drops fell on it. Drack laughed. "You surprise me, kid. Didn't know you were like that. I think I like you better now," he said, bringing out his hammer which looks like a bicycle pedal attached to a stick; a crude appearance that hid a mean punch.

Scott stared at the two who looked so gleeful at the coming melee and scowled at them. "This isn't fair."

"Now you don't have a reason to skimp on your biotic training," Marcus teased. "Seriously, Scott, you're a great shot and all but have you never even thought what would happen if you run out of bullets?"

"This is the 22nd century," he grumbled. "Why are we still trying to bludgeon things like a caveman?"

"Because sometimes, the simplest way is still the best way," Marcus answered.

Scott rolled his eyes. "Anyway, you heard what Jaal said. Watch your sixes. Internal coms only." He turned away from him and followed after Jaal, with the two behind him. "SAM, I need you to watch out for signs of camouflaging like Jaal is doing," he instructed the AI internally.

"Yes, Scott," the AI answered and began processing what he can see and hear from its node back at the Hyperion. A corner of his visor also lit up, alerting him to the AI's presence as it slipped into his armor and took control over its scans. Times like this made him feel like a puppet dancing on a string of his father.

He huffed out a breath to expel those thoughts away. He shouldn't let the past distract him especially now. Havarl offered many dangers and it just might take a moment of inattention for them to die.

It was not just the animals and the Roekaar they had to deal with. The planet itself seemed to fight them. Aside from the condensation impairing their vision, the moisture was affecting the ground they walked under. Their boots sank in the ground covered with thick litter, slowing their movement either in traversing or defending. It'd be impossible not to leave a trail here. Worse, the soil underneath seemed to be mostly grey colored clay hidden with the dead or decaying matter. Scott couldn't count how many times he stepped on a seemingly stable patch from the spongy floor only to slip and land on his ass when he put his weight on it. All three of them had some tumbles and slips while Jaal looked over them on his stable feet and his armor pristine.

Their trip wasn't a complete waste, however. Havarl had other interesting things to show them if they were in the mood for exploring. The mutations had not completely taken over the planet which it once was. They came upon rolling hills covered with grassy moss on top which Jaal said were not hills but the felled trees during the Cataclysm. There were now burrows made by giant maggots and other creatures. They occasionally also passed by the bones of large animals, their ribs coming down to the ground like pillars of a cathedral. They emerged out of the jaw and Drack would have like to take one fang had it not that it was bigger and taller than him.

"We could probably carve you out of one of those," Marcus remarked.

"Yeah we could do that. Some kind of memorial for surviving in this place," Drack answered and grinned at Scott. "What about it, kid?"

Scott sighed. "If we can solve our transport problems. Also, I don't think it will fit in our cargo hold."

"I'll just come back with a larger ship then," he said and patted the tooth. "Shame we find this when it's dead."

Marcus chuckled at him while Scott smiled and shook his head at him. "Come on, guys. Let's move on or we'll never get out of here."

After the hills, the landscape changed and became more solid with remtech until they reached a flooded canyon made of Remnant walls. It had offered more stability but it was also home to Remnant bots, a group of rylkor and an eiroch.

Figuring they would not reach Mithrava in one day, Scott then had to negotiate with Daar Pelaav to allow them to set up FOBs so they could replenish their armor's stores. At first, Kiiran Dal was extremely against setting alien tech in their homeworld but after persistent negotiation, she allowed them only if they remove it immediately after using it. They spent the night beneath an overhang of rock which was the only dry spot the could find but even so, they didn't get enough sleep due to the animals wandering into their camp at all hours.

The next day, Scott was in a sour mood even when they found the missing scientists in the monolith they ran onto on the way. Apparently they were frozen in a stasis field when they tripped its alarms. They would need someone with expertise in remnant technology to be free. Fortunately, it was their team who found them, and once freed, they were extremely thankful to them. He was grateful they didn't need to escort them back to Daar Pelaav. He couldn't summon a face gracious enough to face Kiiran again.

"Just follow the bodies," Scott advised them on how to get back, figuring to put all that slaughter to good use. When the scientists went out of sight, he signaled his team to prepare to slaughter their way again to the remnant site.

After two days, they found Mithrava at last, which as Jaal said, was the only artificial structure around outgrowing the giant trees. How to find the entrance was the problem. They looked around its blocky, high walls and found no opening on the etched and glowing surface. The entrance Kiiran Dal gave was an alcove of a waterfall. It was already night, the forest lit brighter with the darker shadows and chirps all around them when they found a console behind the waterfall. It opened a false wall; octagonal blocks falling away to reveal a chamber with a gravity well in the middle. It sent them up to the next level which had another gravity well. They climbed numerous levels though the gravity wells until they reached one which sent them sideways to a balcony overlooking the whole jungle. Dark, massive clouds were hanging over it and they could hear the heavy rain like drums on the forest leaves. The wind picked up, whistling through the trees, carrying water to splash on them like sea spray.

They needed to move. Scott led them around to the end, but the balcony ended up with the dark, slick walls of the structure. However, there were basalt-like columns nearby which they could jump on.

"I suppose there won't be ladders here?" Scott said caustically as they looked at those.

"No. We'll have to jump up these columns," Jaal answered, oblivious to his tone.

Drack looked up the smooth walls to its end which were extremely far from them and grumbled. "Ugh. We're climbing again?"

Marcus laughed. "C'mon, Drack. It'd be fun."

Drack continued growling and waved at the walls. "This is the only time I'd say I'm too old for."

After a lot of jumping, they reached the last level with gravity well to the top floor. The floor's walls were open to all sides, with only railings to keep anyone from falling out. Underneath the canopy, the scholars were stationed around the gravity well. They were dressed in a similar white suit with shawls draped over them. Some were studying artifacts in tables in front of them while some were in the midst of a discussion. They all stopped what they were doing when they appeared and stood gaping at them.

Then a male with dull, leathery grey skin with pink undertones and white facial markings and wearing a white shawl hurried over to meet them. "How did you come here?" he asked, surprised, his eyes flicking from Jaal to him. "You are an alien and yet you have bypassed this tower's security."

"I can manipulate Remnant technology to some degree," Scott answered.

The scholar paused, still staring, then he said, in a tone of disbelief and sadness, "No one outside our order has bothered to come here."

Scott shrugged. "Can't see why. It's not like you did not provide enough ladders," he said with a nod at the gaping gravity well in the middle of the structure.

The scholar stared at him, incredulous. "Ladders? Why? Are the gravity wells not working?"

Scott thought that, aside from the ladders, the Angara lacked an understanding of sarcasm. "No, it's working fine. Anyway, I'm Scott Ryder, Pathfinder. A human from the Milky Way. This is Jaal Ama Derav our guide and beside him are Marcus Zola and Nakmor Drack."

He mentally prepared himself for the inevitable crinkling of their face, telling himself it wasn't personal. But he did not need to as it did not happen.

"We've heard of you. You're one of the people who managed to cross the void between galaxies," the scholar said with awe. Scott was pleasantly surprised. The scholar's reaction was very comforting compared to Kiiran Dals'.

This trip wasn't a complete waste after all. At least they'd found one Angara who's happy to see them.

Jaal stepped forward and initiated the salute, which the scholar returned. "I am Jaal Ama Derav. I serve as our envoy to them as permitted by Aya."

"I am First Sage Esmus." He turned to Scott. "So, what business brings you here to our miserable planet?"

"We came here to speak with your Head Scholar."

Esmus blinked. "I'm the head scholar."

"You're the head scholar?" Jaal asked in surprise.

"Yes, I know you were expecting a female," Esmus said, with a little exasperation. "But I am truly the head scholar. Ask anyone of us and they will tell you the same."

Scott looked from Esmus, who had his back up, to Jaal who was looking at him with his mouth slack. "I'm missing something here, aren't I?"

Esmus turned to him with an understanding look. "I suppose those at Aya had not explained our culture to you much, have they? Very well. You should know, human, that to us Angara, males are warriors, poets, artists, singers, and hunters while females are soldiers, engineers, politicians, and farmers. Science also falls to the domain of women so my fellow Angaran here is surprised at my title. That was the system then until the arrival of the Kett-and you-have changed things. Every day, our conception of reality becomes more muddled." Esmus looked over him with a measured gaze. "Yes, indeed, you are causing a great change upon us," he said softly.

"Is that…bad?" Scott asked.

"I do not know. Only that our society is undergoing a great upheaval because of your presence," he replied matter of factly. He seemed neither angry at what their arrival was doing to them or glad. "Your bizarre appearances mystifies us along with your behaviors."

"So you became head scholar because of us?"

"No. It happened much earlier, before your arrival but just after the Cataclysm but your arrival helped this change be accepted a little. You should know that first, all scholars come from Aya and we here in Mithrava are no exception. However, scholarship is mostly pursued by women and it was unheard of then for me, a male, to be one. I admit, I was different from my peers, for I am more an explorer of ideas rather than the world and more inclined to take apart a rock to examine its composition than make songs about it. Still, being of Aya, they cannot prevent me to be one and allowed me to pursue it despite their doubts. It was hard getting to my position, for I have not the advantage of the skills and knowledge passed from mother to daughter by tradition. But still, I persisted and here I am. My achievement was supposed to be a chance occurrence, but now with your arrival, our society is now forced to confront itself and determine whether it can hold up to the new reality."

Scott went silent, astounded at being informed of the ramifications of their arrival. Its scope was much wider than they realized and he reviewed the reactions of all the Angara they had met. Was their dislike not just prejudice but maybe because the Initiative genuinely presented a threat to their way of life?

If it is, they needed to change their approach.

Meanwhile, Esmus peered at him with a hesitant, almost fearful look. "I've…heard reports that you are not one people but of different origins. You grew up under different suns. Did you…face a similar problem like this?"

"We've had some crisis but it's not the same as yours." He felt genuine sympathy for Esmus and his race's issues with them. It was not long ago that humans warred with each other over mere physical adaptations to the environment. Even after a devastating war that engulfed their whole planet, its embers still smoldered until they discovered the Prothean ruins on Mars. Then, there was a brief flare-up, but quickly resolved by the same artifact they were fighting between. An artifact created by unknown people of unknown intentions. Who knew what its creators have planned for the human race? So they postponed this desire to war with each other as they followed the trail from the artifact, leading them to the Charon Relay and to worlds beyond it. The desire flared up again but through a competition to settle as many worlds as they could for their people. But as they traveled deeper between the dark spaces of the galaxy, they started to feel fear which compelled them to draw together, even if they still didn't like each other very much. They had a saying, "Better the devil you know," and this was a reason why they swore mutual alliance. An alliance bound by fear of the unknown before them.

Fortunately just in time for the arrival of the Turians and their introduction to the galactic society, where they must continually strive, together, against the other races to secure a place for themselves.

He was proud to say that this internal crisis has been resolved and the human race had progressed far enough to be confident that they will never regress back to it. After all, why fight among each other when there are people far more alien to fight against?

"I see. Can I ask about the particulars?" Esmus asked.

Scott looked fondly at the curiosity in his eyes. They must have looked to him as the Turians had to them during the First Contact War. Now it was their turn to be the visiting aliens and he hoped they'd be kinder than the Turians had been to them.

"Sure. But perhaps if we had time. The Moshae needed your assistance and asked us to get you."

His skin brightened as much as his dull, tough skin allowed. "I understand. Forgive me, even my own people think me a blabbermouth. I forgot that you did not come here to talk about my personal troubles."

"Yes. I was instructed by Governor Shie to bring you to each vault along with the Moshae to study them."

Esmus went quiet. "Of course," he said reluctantly.

Scott paused at his reaction. "Is something wrong?"

"I know the importance of studying the vaults but.." He looked beyond the railings, at the dark sky where a storm was lashing out at Havarl. Some of the scholars near the railings muttered in dismay and rolled up the manuscripts on the tables. "We were so close to fixing the vault here."

"I thought the location of the vault was lost and Havaarl's too unstable to recover it by our technology," Jaal said.

"Yes. But we knew a way to recover it and the opportunity has come."

Scott cut in. "I'm having trouble understanding both of you. Can you two go over the start?"

Esmus gave a short background on the early days of the Angara. Havaarl was their homeworld and was also a planet where a vault was located. Their ancestors have managed to open it and there they learned science. This was the start of their technological age and they kept learning from it up until space travel technology where it gave the locations of the worlds with vaults like it. Discovering them, they settled there, around the artifacts that brought them so much prosperity, and curious of the being or beings that left it for them.

Then the vaults went berserk; Havarl started heaving. The ground shook and volcanoes erupted. Voeld was covered in ice and Aya was covered in lava. Trillions of people died during the Cataclysm. Only seven hundred thousand managed to get on ships and survive. With tears in their eyes, they turned away from their destabilizing worlds, and fled. They wandered, looking for hope or looking for answers from the being that made them. They thought: was this their Maker's punishment? A warning for a sacrilege they were unaware of? Why give them so much joy just to give them this immense suffering?

They wandered on until they reached planets the vault had made habitable before or others they can inhabit with the help of the technology the vault taught them. Some of them tried to go back to Havarl, but it was a planet they didn't recognize anymore. The mountains they know have sunk; the valleys uplifted and the seas emptied. Havarl was choked with the accelerated growth of life. The vault was nowhere to be seen and due to fluctuations in its gravitational and magnetic fields, it was hard to map where it had gone.

Until now.

"There was one long ago who had knowledge of the vault," Esmus said. "Zorai a champion of the Angara during the Cataclysm. After spending most of her life ensuring the survival of our people, she decided to spend her remaining years looking for the vault in the hopes of fixing it. But she went missing. The last message we have from her was that she was close to discovering the entrance to the vault. Scholars before me presumed her dead. Then we discovered that her soul has returned."

"Wait, _returned_?" Scott asked.

"Yes," Esmus confirmed with a serious look on his face. So was Jaal. They were not joking at all.

"How do you mean _returned?_"

"Souls return within families. An object — heirloom — tied closely to that bloodline could cause memories to resurface," Esmus explained.

Scott stared at them both. Their race had not been very spiritual for a long time and this talk of souls made him feel the same way as if their translators did not work and they were still figuring out each other's language. "O-kay…" he said, rather to urge them on than agree.

"This is the opportunity," Esmus continued. "If we can make her descendant recover her memories, we may find the entrance to the vault."

"Did you find her descendant?"

"Yes. The descendant's name is Taavos, a… Roekaar and of course unwilling to participate. We've tried talking. But we can't even get through the Roekaar's defenses. That's why we're stuck here. We're waiting for Evfra to intercede for us but so far, the Kett is taking too much of the Resistance's time."

"That Roekaar may be dead by the time we get Esmus back to save Havaarl," Jaal quietly said. Scott had to agree; Havarl, as it is, is just too dangerous to live on.

"But this is not a concern of yours," Esmus said to Scott with a defeated tone. "Give my group time to pack our equipment before we come with you and make a final attempt to convince Evfra to talk to the Roekaar."

Saving Havarl may quickly get them in the good graces of the few Angara who were friendly with them and convince the rest, Scott thought. Look what saving the Moshae had brought them. Who can say what saving their homeworld can get them.

Besides, he liked Esmus personally. "I'm willing to help but…you say the descendant is a Roekaar. Being an alien, wouldn't I make it worse?"

"Yes. Anything you might try to do to them will make your relations with them worse. But still, there's nothing you can do to make it better since they wish for your deaths. But your help will not be lost to us. Aya will be grateful for your help."

Jaal turned to him, glowing bright with hope. Even without Jaal's support, it would be prudent for the Initiative to do as much favor as they could with Aya. Perhaps they could call it in for a better trade deal or propose a technology exchange. And besides, this might annoy Evfra.

"How will you recover Zorai's memories?"

Esmus called one of his assistants who walked to a chest and took something inside from it. He came back bearing an oblong box with a smooth surface like shellac but as thick as wood. Esmus took it from his hands and opened it to show them. Inside was a gauntlet for an Angaran hand, made of a dark cloth studded with glowing, dark blue crystals. An intricate web of circuitry and silvery contacts ran over its interior and exterior surfaces. "This is an heirloom of Zorai. Make the descendant wear it to sync their memories." As he saw Scott take it and examine it, he turned to Jaal. "You better not come with them," he warned him.

Scott looked up from the heirloom to them. "Why can't Jaal come with us?"

"Since the Roekaar, being their nature, would be unwilling to talk with you, I assume you'd be using force to do it?" Esmus asked him.

Scott hesitated. "If it comes to that," he admitted.

"Then Jaal cannot help you. Your actions would be a provocation and if he was involved, The Roekaar would retaliate against Jaal's family."

Scott's brow furrowed at this. "Why? Jaal's family has nothing to do with what we're doing."

"You don't understand. To us, a family is responsible for all its members. An offense committed by a member will also be a crime of the family."

Scott paused as he tried to understand this. But this is not the time to debate about its merits. "But we might need Jaal."

"Of course you do. I would be willing to go with you, for I have no family, but I do not have the strength of arms you need and so would slow you down. Jaal is fit for your purpose but in this case, he cannot be seen to help you."

Scott paused as an idea formed. "He can't be seen to help us?" he repeated.

"Yes," Esmus said. "Why? Why do you stare so?"

Scott smoothed his features back to normal. "Nothing. I just have an idea of how we can get around that." Scott said his plan to them. Jaal went dark. "You wish me to lie?" he asked angrily.

"For the sake of Havarl, yes," Esmus replied. "Would you be like the Roekaar and deny the salvation of our birthplace for the sake of your pride?"

Jaal glared at him for a little while longer. Their lights flashed back and forth in a silent war until he agreed.

Jaal reluctantly turned to Scott. "Attacking a Roekaar camp would not be easy. We will need to prepare."

Scott nodded. "Agreed," he said and turned to Esmus. "Where is the Roekaar camp?"

Esmus opened his omnitool and tapped on it to send to Jaal, who converted it and sent it to Scott. "They're somewhere past here," he said. A light blinked on the map projected above Scott's omnitool.

"Somewhere past here?" he repeated the vague instruction.

"I wasn't allowed in so I don't know exactly where it is."

"Esmus is right," Jaal said. "The Roekaar would not want anyone out of their group to know their whereabouts and also make it difficult to discover them. Their camp would be hidden."

Their mission became more complicated than they first expected. They'd need more resources than they have now just to find the Roekaar camp. "Then we need to get back to the Tempest."


End file.
